Blood of the Covenant: One Demon Plan, Two Men Laughs (DMC V - Double SI)

[Atma]

Usually, inter-dimensional travel is not something that just… happens. It requires preparation, an eye for details, and enough power to bypass the barriers between worlds. Something that it's not easy.

Also, if done wrong, it ends with the recipients a smear of indistinguishable matter on the dimensional walls that surround a reality, so. Not something that many attempt.

In certain times, however, a series of consequences make inter-dimensional travel possible. Never easy, but easier.

A Grand summoning of heroes to save a planet. Direct divine intervention, be it good or evil. A particularly rare alignment of celestial bodies. Or in this case, a giant, man-eating, demonic tree which decides to snack on an entire city in order to grow a single fruit that would grant the power of a god to whoever would eat it.

So, usually run of the mill demons don't have the power to summon things from different realities. On the other hand, when there is such a demonic tree the size of multiple skyscrapers already breaking down the dimensional barriers between Hell and Earth, the situation is… a lot different.

So, this demon hatched a plan. It decided to summon a certain number of mortals into Hell, spin a story that they had been abducted by a demon lord, and they needed to kill it to return home.

It was a lie, of course, for those that haven't already understood this.

"But worry not, worthy people." The demon would say, not showing themselves.

"I have been tasked with giving you enough power to survive and grow, so that you can kill the Demon Lord!" Red orbs would then fall at their feet, while a sinister glow would shine from inside them, making them feel… stronger, powerful, on top of the world even.

"You can use this ancient relic to strengthen yourself with the energy that you would gain from defeating the smaller monsters under the Demon Lord!"

This was, strangely enough, the truth. On the other hand, the gold statue of a woman with a lion mask carrying an Hourglass had such an aura around it that it was pretty clear that it wasn't just an oversized paperweight.

"Fight! Win! Grow! Kill the Demon Lord at the center of this realm and go back to your home, with all the powers you've gained!" And then the voice would disappear, leaving the six groups of exactly One Hundred and Eleven people in various parts of Hell. One such group found themselves in a strange, fleshy room with a single door on the opposite side from the Statue.

Now, the demon that had summoned these people was neither a base demon nor a stupid one. No, it was a Lusachia. Despite being an amorphous blob of mouths and atrophied muscles, it was a specialist in magic and had more than enough power to be a threat. So it knew what it was doing in its attempts to evolve into a greater demon, maybe even a Lord at that. Hence why it summoned people that had very specific psychological profiles, such that they would not attempt to think too much about what was happening. The demon would just lose a bit of power now - planting a small seed of it within the souls of the summoned people - for big returns later. The power was still the demon's, after all, it just needed to safely grow. After that, the Lusachia could just rip it out and recover the initial investment with more than enough interest - and all without risking its own life.

It was an admittedly ingenious plan. Of course, we all know that the plans of mice and men - and in this case, demons - often go awry.

Like in this case. As unfortunately for this demon, two of the people who were caught in the summoning spell had a more... outside perspective of things.

 

[Atma]

The protagonists of this story slowly woke up with a rather pounding headache, laying on something vaguely soft, uneven, and slowly moving.

Unpleasant, to be honest.

One, was a tall, 30 something years man looking a little younger than he should, rather chubby, with long hair that was half dyed purple, half his natural black. He was dressed in a simple hoodie and pants, both black with a white grin plastered on it, one an X, the other a simple horizontal line and the mouth stylized to look like a toothy smile. And soft, fluffy socks with the grippy things under the soles in a blue, white and red spotted pattern. Blue glasses were resting on his face, slightly askew.

The other was an average looking man in his late 20's, with short, dark brown hair and a short beard. Wearing a simple white button down shirt, grey pants, and old sneakers. As he got his bearings, he began to fuss over a pair of red and black framed glasses, while occasionally looking around the assembled people with a mix barely contained nervousness and confusion.

Around them, was a throng of other people. Their numbers included several high school teens and university students wearing varsity jackets, girls dressed to the nines and/or with cheerleading outfits, guys dressed in shirts and jeans and more refined men and women dressed in expensive, professional suits. Almost all of them were waking up with slightly lesser headaches than the other two previously mentioned individuals. Not that they were aware of this, of course.

Then, they registered where they were.

They saw the walls of a cave, or something shaped like a cave, that were a sickly red-pink color. The walls could almost be described like meat going bad, with veins running throughout, pulsating and twisting a little every now and then. Almost as though these veins were actually bringing blood from somewhere to somewhere else.

There was no sun or windows anywhere, but there was still some kind of red tinted light coming from above, softly illuminating the room and making the details of it hard to make out. This bizarre light only served to confuse the people within more.

The silent mass confusion lasted for a minute or two, before someone, a girl by the sound of her voice, started complaining.

"Where are we? What are we doing here?! I want to go home!" Her voice was enough to shock everyone else from their surprise and, soon, everyone was starting to complain. Loudly.

Mostly just repeating the same things over and over, asking each other and shouting over the flurry of similar questions. Some fists were raised and, in moments, tempers were high enough to start a bonfire.

The VOICE spoke right at this moment, when everyone was distracted.

"Do not be afraid, brave people of the Earth."

The voice was feminine, warm, and caring in its tone. It seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Yet, the way the voice sounded, gave the impression of coming from somewhere above the assembled crowd.

"I know you must be scared. Finding yourselves someplace else from where you were moments ago, along with strangers, unknowing of what is happening. It must be frightening."

Everyone calmed down fast. Very fast.

Suspiciously fast…

"You have been brought here by a Demon Lord. A powerful monster that is trying to invade Earth and wage war against mankind to become a God. You have been put in the beginning of this invasion. If you do not fight and kill the demons that will come for you, you will be killed."

It was like a frozen mist had descended on the crowd. Everyone was still, listening to the voice and shivering, the temperature seemingly dropping by the second.

"Yet, I have a way to save yourselves and your fellows beyond this realm. I will lend you some of my power. So that you can grow stronger and better in the face of this evil. Think of yourselves as becoming a mighty tree from a small seed. Once you are grown enough, you could even manage to defeat the Demon Lord that sits in the center of this realm, allowing you all to return home and halting the invasion before it can even begin."

Warmth surrounded the crowd and a faint - sickly, sinister - glow could be seen inside their bodies, around the chest area, before vanishing into nothingness.

Leaving behind, however, a feeling of warmth and power that washed away much of the fear and dread that lingered in most of the assembled people.

"This Hell is going to be hard: only the strong will survive. I have faith in you all. However, when you defeat the various demons that you will encounter, they will drop red gems. Collect these gems and bring them to the Statue at the back of the cave to raise your abilities to greater heights."

Like a veil parting, there was the statue the voice was speaking about. Said statue was a golden woman, with a lion mask and an hourglass on her shoulders. It stood there, motionless and just... watching.

Furthermore, several of those red gems appeared in front of each person, getting absorbed after a moment.

"I bid all of you good luck, people of Earth. We will meet again if you manage to reach the Demon Lord."

And the voice, along with the warmth that was held in her words, vanished, leaving a very confused group of people inside the cave.

For a moment, Sol stood in silence, his mind processing what he just heard, before his eyes slowly moved towards the red orbs. He recognized them all right, the crystalline face in a state of what he could only assume was agony was a big sign of what it was… and also a red flag.

"An angelic voice tells us to partake in its power and fight a demon lord to save the Earth. Normally I'd say this was the plot of an anime… but these orbs? They're from DMC, I'd recognize them anywhere."

At first glance, the orb looked like a standard red orb, but Sol noticed a distinct undercurrent of color there. Ever so slightly, there was a hint of blue-ish purple flickering through the crystalline face.

"No, something is wrong here, they're glowing strangely." Sol thought to himself before attempting to step away from the orb and looking to see if anyone else was doing likewise. Before he could do so however, the orb slammed into his chest, knocking him off his feet. Sol felt something at the point of impact and panic began to creep into his breath.

Alex, the chubby guy near him, was staring at the red gems with a blank face, before it morphed into a strange mix of horror, dread and understanding, along with hopelessness. Right after that, the gems rushed towards the persons nearest to them, vanishing inside them like water in a desert.

That prompted Alex to give a low, hearty "Fuck." He then got up, patted away the dust on his pants, before starting to look around himself with a scrutinizing gaze, trying to see if anyone else was as worried as him.

And his eyes landed on Sol after a moment.

Sol caught the look, slowly nodded and made his way over to Alex, making sure he didn't step too closely to the rapidly dwindling orbs.

When he got close enough, Sol slowly took off his glasses and asked in a shaky voice. "Please tell me that I'm not the only one who realizes that something is seriously wrong here?"

"We are in what is clearly Hell, that statue is the Divinity Statue and the orbs were Demon Blood, Red Orbs or whatever you want to call them. We are in Devil May Cry. Also, I don't believe whatever the voice told us. Like… not a word. Maybe just that there is a demon lord that is trying to invade the Earth, and even then I'm skeptical." Alex nodded, confirming what Sol was fearing.

"Also, I'm pretty sure the power that it has been 'lent' to us is a trap. Like… a huge one. From what I know, humans using the powers of demons always end badly." He waved at his chest, before turning to look at the other people.

Already, several cliques were forming: athletes joining with athletes, girls with girls, businessmen and women with businessmen and women. There were other kinds of people, though: loner kids dressed in gothic fashion that seemed to glare at each other, smiling guys with eyes that were regularly straying towards girls' asses and sycophants that were sucking up to other people.

"How come no one is asking questions about the situation we are in?" Alex mused, just loud enough for Sol to hear.

"Well first, thank you for confirming all that cause I kinda thought I was losing my mind. Second, uhhh… Maybe they don't know or… maybe they don't care. Maybe they're just seeing the power on offer and not the forest for the trees. Yeah, no I agree with you. I think this is a trap. It's gotta be." Sol whispered quietly before looking back at the assembling line.

"I'm guessing right now that this is like a hellish battle royale death game. We die, and the obviously notAngel gets something out of it." Sol continued.

"The voice did say lend…" Alex seemed to get lost in thought for a moment, before his eyes refocused on the people in front of the Divinity Statue. Most of them had already gone and spent whatever amount of Demon Blood had been given to them, some growing several inches, others turning into musclebound hulks, others becoming the epitome of beauty. There were also a rare few who were showing off spheres of electricity or producing great gouts of flame without a care in the world.

"Like a seed that would grow in a mighty tree… The demon - and I'm pretty certain it's a demon - wants us to use the power that they have lent to us, grow it and then get it back when we either die or reach them. Raising their powers without doing anything." Alex's face was white as a sheet, terror etched in every line of his face.

"Then we should try to warn them right? I mean…" Sol quickly turned to look back at the people, and stopped speaking upon really noting their physical changes, "They… they all just bought into that trap hook, line, and sinker." Turning back around, Sol begins to tap his fingers in sequence, deep in contemplation.

"They're augmenting their bodies through demonic energy, right? So… so can we even do anything? Are we too late?" He said before fretting over the situation further. His fingers stopped tapping and he turned back to the long haired guy. "What if we don't do that. What if we get rid of this loan through something like an item, or a weapon…" He trailed off before looking at Alex.

"Something that maybe it won't expect, and then we get out of this place and start trying to warn people or find others." Sol finishes as his fingers stop tapping.

"The problem with that is that there are demons in this place." Alex said, drily, while looking at the queue in front of the statue slowly dwindled more and more.

"Who knows if we can survive without that power? On the other hand, we don't really have any other option, do we? I honestly prefer dying before giving a demon more power or, worse, turning into a marionette for them." His words were almost hissed, before he sighed.

"I'm… pretty sure that the Divinity statue can give us something different for power. The life-augmenting orb, for example. And knowledge, you can get new techniques from it, after all. Maybe magic? Human magic, I mean. Unless you need a Devil trigger… I think it was called Magic Gauge in the first game? I'm not sure. Still worth a shot. Oh, and knowledge of self defense. Parkour. Probably a weapon, but I'm pretty sure that we're going to need something belonging to a demon to create a Devil… Arm…. fuck!"

His outburst was mostly contained, but the way he had gripped his chest was anything but.

"Purchasing a Devil Arm? That's a trap option. I mean, it's also a way for us to remove the power inside of us, assuming it counts, but… no, no, it's not a good idea. If we do that, then there's the risk that the demon will take over us. Arkham showed us that it's too dangerous…" His breath was starting to come faster and faster, as his left hand kept contracting in a spasm, knuckles white as a sheet.

"Wait… Arkham… He was human long before he grabbed Force Edge. Magic is an option. That could be an option! Not a great one but, maybe it'll even the odds somewhat. And we don't have to purchase Devil Arms. They form when a demon's killed, so if we kill a demon, and get a Devil Arm, then the weapons formed that way would be loyal, right? That could work." Sol said more, animated this time.

Sol turns back to the dwindling crowd before speaking again, a slight tremor of confidence in his voice "We'll need something to work with first though, maybe use that loan not for power directly, but for tools to get that power. Like a spellbook, a gun, a blade. Hell! A gunblade!" He all but shouted, causing a few of the remaining people to look his way.

"Just a… brainstorming. You all be on your way." Sol said to the onlookers before quietly saying. "We may have something, it isn't the best idea, but I've got nothing else."

Alex trembled. "No, it's a good option. A Devil Arm is one of the most powerful weapons out there… but we don't have a Weaponsmith to craft one, and no demons to kill to create one. Even then, even if we find the soul of a Greater Demon just laying around, we would need to be stronger than it to command it."


Alex forced himself to slow down, half-curled on himself, hiding behind Sol from the other people. "We could even use the power that has been lent to us, but the problem is that it would be too strong for us right now. It would take control and turn us into puppets."

Sol grimaced before muttering to himself. "I forgot the actual strength aspect of those weapons. Thanks for catching that one for me."

A few beats of silence, before Alex finally got up once again, deep, loud breaths rattling into his lungs, the sensation of tingling inside all of his limbs.

"Ok, I'm calm now. Well, as much as I can be." He really, really wasn't. "The first thing we need is a Blue Orb. More health is the best option. Then, something for self defense. I want magic, more than anything else right now, but that can wait. Survival comes first. So, I'm just hoping to find something I can use. If I'm right and remember things correctly, we can upgrade our own power with Purple Orbs. I don't remember how much they cost, but it's a start."

He looked around, noticing that more than 90 percent of the people were done with the statue and nodded. "Should we go and join the queue? I don't fancy being the last one and getting stopped or mugged for our red orbs."

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea." Sol says before walking towards the remaining people. As he did so, he took a further look at the remaining people, noticing the increased muscle mass and superficial changes that the others exhibited.

"Okay, so is that tied to power options, life and vitality increases? No, can't be. You can upgrade Lady's stats in DMC4 and nothing physically changes on her. So either that's a gameplay thing or there has to be something more going on." Sol thought as he queued up. "Right, see if there is a simple weapon that you can use, maybe a vial of Holy Water, or else I'm grabbing the nearest sharp rock and using that until something better comes my way."

Sol turns back to Alex and asks, "You good?"

Alex nodded, before passing him and going first. "Let me make the mistakes. No one uses items, not yet, either. As much as I'm going to sound like an asshole, I don't want the others to find out anything right now."

After whispering that to Sol, he fell silent, looking blankly ahead, watching how the girl in front of him turned almost amazonian in moments, before strutting away, clearly enjoying the looks of lust that other people were giving her. Alex ignored her completely, reaching the statue and just… extending a hand towards it, like the others had done.

A moment later, he was in a white space, gold light shining from everywhere, and yet not blinding him. The Divinity Statue was there, observing.

He exchanged a look with the eyes of the leon mask for a moment, before bowing slightly "Thank you and please, guide me so that I'm not making too many mistakes."

He knew that, probably, wouldn't work, but, in his eyes, everything that could be useful was worth a try.

"Items, please."

A window made of gold light appeared in front of him, while a smaller one with the amount of red orbs he owned appeared in the upper left corner.

The only thing that he managed to see in the 'default' page was a series of options that started with Demonic Power (L) Strengthening: Strength. Dexterity. Charisma.

"So, those are the trap options. And without knowing what to ask, they wouldn't know that there are other pages to see. Well, maybe the weapon page, that would be pretty easy to find, I think." His thoughts jarred to a halt the moment the window in front of him finished changing, showing the options.

Items:
Blue Orb: 750 Red Orbs
Purple Orb: 1.750 Red Orbs
Gold Orb: 1.000 Red Orbs

The rest of the items were still there, but he didn't care about them, so they didn't even register in his mind.

Alex blinked, before checking his balance: 1.500 Red Orbs.

"I thought that the Blue Orb cost more? Better not look in the horse's mouth." His face didn't change from his scrutinizing expression, but he also didn't hesitate, tapping the Blue Orb and watching his lifeblood - metaphorical lifeblood, anyway - scroll down.

And then, he felt… good. Better than how he had ever felt in all of his life. The changes were… subdued, if confronted with what the others had passed through, he wasn't a model all of sudden, but he was noticeably slimmer and he actually had a bit more of a muscle tone.

"I think this thing just improved my physical status. Which… makes sense, really." He slapped his cheek before going down a rabbit hole of speculation, focusing back on the screen in front of him.

"Please show me what kind of spell I can use without using the demonic power that has been lent to me."

It was a long shot and he knew that. Yet, with magic so close, he had to try to get some, even if it was the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass.

The strange thing was… Sometimes, those kinds of passes? They hit the mark.

So, when Alex opened his eyes, he found that there were some options. Something that he had no idea was possible.

"Enochian spells…!" He was suddenly smiling, his eyes blazing with hope. Sure, all of them were the basics of the basics, but he could get them and it wouldn't strengthen the power that the demon had given to him.

"A simple, long range attack in the shape of a bullet, very weak but serviceable… and a defensive one. A half-spherical barrier in front of me? Well, the full barrier version is too costly, so I'm going with that." He quickly tapped the two options he wanted, spending the remaining Red Orbs in his possession, before bowing again at the Divinity Statue and thanking it.

"Thank you for your guidance. Please, guide my friend as well."

Right after that, he was back in Hell, no more than a second having passed outside of the strange space that was where the Statue operated. His clothes, while not exactly tight, but still fitting, were now hanging a bit around him. They were now clearly oversized. By a single size, but it was noticeable, if you had seen him closely before.

Alex turned towards Sol, sending him a wink fast enough that no one but him would notice. "Do not take anything with a capital L in parenthesis."

Then, he took a step to the side and walked away from the crowd, his new knowledge twisting in his head.

Sol nodded slightly before approaching the statue.

"Nothing with the L prefix, okay so I guess the other stat boosting items are still good then. Maybe I can get something else then." Sol thought

"Alright, let's do this." Sol stated before placing a hand on the statue. A field of white took his vision before he saw that he and the divinity statue were in a white. He looked around briefly, before asking the statue a question.

"Item menu please."

Two windows of golden light manifested before him, the larger of the two showing a list of available items, and the smaller showing his red orb count.

"1,500 of a bad loan, okay let's see…" Sol trailed off as he spotted the items with an L prefix.

"Demonic Power (L) Strengthening: Strength, Dexterity, Charisma. Prices seem pretty cheap too. And I'm guessing that's how it gets them. We'll avoid that for the infinite future. Thank you very much."

Sol noticed that the Blue Orb only cost 750 orbs, and for a moment he thought back to Alex.

"He definitely looked different post statue, but not so immediately different like the others. It is though half my budget… fuck it. I don't have nearly enough for a Purple, and a Gold orb won't prevent me from getting killed in the first place." Sol thought as he selected a blue orb.

Almost immediately, Sol felt better than he had, well ever. Lighter, he actually felt his standard work clothes feel slightly bigger on himself. Most of all, his vision began to blur behind his glasses. Removing them, he blinked several times before realizing what just happened.

"No more terrible eyesight for me, I hope. Okay… you got yourself a repeat customer, but in order to do that, I need something to protect myself. Now, I'm no warrior but what do you have weapon wise?" Sol asked the statue.

There was a brief moment of stillness before the window closed and opened again revealing a list of very basic weapon names. Scrolling through the list, Sol thought back to what Alex said.

"No one used items, but did anyone actually walk out with a weapon? I didn't see anyone with one." He mused to himself.

Finally, he spent his remaining points on two weapons that the statue offered. The first was a hand axe. Simple, boring, and familiar. It was something Sol had used in the past for chopping wood. The second was a thin dagger, one he could probably try to conceal or save as a last resort. It may not have been the best of ideas purchase wise, but Sol felt he needed something physical in his hands for self assurance.

"I guess this is goodbye for now." Sol began addressing the statue. "Thank you for giving my friend the heads up. Best of luck for any future business down the line."

And with that said, the white field receded and Sol found himself back in Hell, hand pressed against the statue's head. Turning to Alex, he said "It's better than a rock."

"Very." Alex nodded, before jerking his head towards the place where they came from. Away from the rest of the crowd.

"Wanna chat about our strategy to kill monsters?" His lips were quirked in a rather sardonic tilt, but it was pretty clear that he was being very serious. A faint light was now shining in his eyes, a hint of Hope still surviving.

"Also, what did you take? I got a couple of… interesting things…." He was already starting to walk back, his fingers unconsciously moving into strange patterns in the air.

"Yeah I think that would be best, maybe hit and run tactics? I grabbed a hand axe and a knife. No L prefix on either so we're good in that department. I'm better with the axe, mind you, so if you need a weapon, the knife's all yours." A dark look passed over Sol's face. "But I've got a bad feeling about all those people who seemed to have just taken enhancements. Unless they can break stone or steel with a punch, or find weapons out wherever there is, they'll be easy prey."

"I'm going to speculate for a moment here, and say that the demon is going to put them in front of a series of very weak demons so that they can think they are hot shit, before dying when the difficulty spikes upwards." Alex adjusted his glasses nervously, before looking over Sol's shoulder.

"I took two spells. Enochian magic is a thing, apparently, but… Ok, they are not going to use the demonic power that has been granted to us, but my own. Which means that until I get the first Purple Orb, I'm gonna be limited to…." He lost himself in thought for a moment or two, before nodding.

"Three to four shots if casted hastily, five if I can take my time between the shots. As for the barrier spell, same thing, they use the same energy. So, it's an either or. Five weak hits or, maybe, one medium-weak hit. Which is not bad for a beginner, but it's still… frustrating." Alex took a deep breath, before shaking his head and jerking it towards the group of people.

"Look. They are already moving forward." The group of people were all walking - well, strutting, most of them, anyway - towards the room where the monsters would appear. "I think… that most of them wouldn't listen even if we told them the truth."

"Dammit all they're so hopped up on the promise of power that... Okay, well, we just gotta play it safe, right?" Sol asked in response before catching himself.

"You know, we've been planning back and forth like madmen and I never got your name. I'm Sol" Sol said before extending his hand.

Alex smiled before returning the gesture and replying. "Alex."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Chapter 2 will be released this coming Saturday. We're trying to plan around the idea of releasing chapters every two to three days after the previous one. This is so that readers have a chance to read the most current chapters before the next chapter is released.

 

[Atma]

Alex and Sol followed the dregs of the crowd from behind, letting them take the brunt of the demons into the new room. Did that mean that they wouldn't get as many Red Orbs as they would otherwise get?

Yes.

But, and it was an important factor, it would also mean that they would get information, see what kind of enemies they would face and they would save their strength for later, when they would actually fight. Considering they weren't using Demonic Performance Enhancer, it was better to play safe than fast and loose.

Especially because they had no save files.

"So, I can see that a lot of them managed the demons with only small wounds. Only a few of them have actually gotten serious wounds." Alex remarked, from a corner of the new room, looking at the various, demon-drugged, people that were attacking with wild abandon, and without any kind of finesse, the monsters that appeared every now and then in the room.

Marionettes. Falling from the ceiling, made of wood, dressed in colorful clothes and sporting a series of weapons that looked rusty and somewhat crude, but still pretty sharp and dangerous.

Sometimes a gun.

Still very dangerous. For the two of them, anyway. The others were… pretty safe, and getting bolder by the moment.

"Damn, it's like watching a drug commercial: the first hit is free and easy, from the second, though, there will be Hell to pay." Alex stopped and blinked for a moment. "Literally, in this case." He chuckled at his macabre joke.

Sol couldn't help but return the laugh at the dark humor, before miming a smashing motion. "This is your body, this is your body on demon drugs, nobody asked questions." His smile died as he looked at the discarded remains of the marionettes. "Ah… kinda feel like an idiot now, could have bought another blue orb if I knew these would be around here."

Sol then took a moment to really look at the Marionette weapons for himself. Yes they were sharp, and it could probably ruin someone's day permanently, but they were clearly not meant to be handled by normal hands. What bothered him though was that they were still there. If he hadn't bought the hand axe and knife, he knew damn well he'd be trying to rip one of the marionette weapons free. Did the Demonic Strengthening purchases affect the mind of the buyers or was that literally their own pride speaking?

"I feel like I could get tetanus just looking at these." Sol paused for a moment and then continued. "So… we got marionettes here, first fodder enemy type. You're thinking this'll be a theme for a while? Starter enemies like Marionettes, Msira, Prides, and Scarecrows until our 'friend' drops something bigger on us?"

Alex nodded with conviction. "Definitely. Lure them in with something shiny, hook them with easy power and then…" He gestured up in a jerky motion, miming reeling something up. "Reel them up and away from the water, ready to be fileted and served for lunch." His grimy expression made it more than obvious how he was feeling about it.

"I both want to save them and don't want to, does it make sense? I mean, they end in the most stereotypical isekai fantasy ever and they don't even stop a moment to debate the situation? It's kinda shortsighted of them. And, yes, you and I have the bonus of meta-knowledge, but…" He gestured towards the environment. "This whole place is pretty suspect, isn't it?"

He was gesturing at the fleshy floor, the veins that were still pulsating and bringing blood who knows where, the monsters.

"I can only think that they have been affected by magic."

Sol sighed, "It's one hell of a scheme, even without that knowledge I'd be suspect… but I'd probably take the performance boosts without realizing. Demonic power seems to be a helluva thing, no pun intended."

Sol looked around further before continuing. "It can't just expect us to fight through caves, can it? I mean hell in DMC is always a mixed bag. I mean we've seen fleshy caves, marble rooms of stark contrasts, even a giant chess board if I remember right. That blood is going somewhere." Sol trails briefly before he turns pale.

"We never asked, no one made a point to ask the date." Sol turns to look at Alex with a horrified expression, "Is this the Qliphoth?"

Alex didn't answer. Not verbally. His face, however…

It was whiter than ever before, except for his lips, which were being bit between his teeth, so much that a faint trickle of blood was dripping from them. And even that wasn't enough to stop the incredibly faint whine of pure, unadulterated horror that was escaping his mouth. It sounded a bit like a dog being beaten to death.

The whole thing lasted for a few minutes before Alex managed to recover his senses and nodded, jerkily.

"I'm really hoping that it's not the case. But. Considering our luck until now. I'm afraid. It is." His whole speech was stunted, broken in parts, but he managed to not puke or start screaming. Which was a win, in his book.

"You do know what it means, right?"

"Means we're on a tight schedule. Because either Urizen is about to get up out of his chair, Nero's working out 20 odd years of parental abandonment, or the Sons of Sparda are about to seal this breach." Sol responded, before staring at the other people and continuing. "The demon is using these people to get a leg up on the sons of Sparda, this is not going to end well."

"Exactly." Alex nodded, turning his eyes towards the group of people fighting the demonic wooden puppets with wild abandon, using the power that had been granted to them without a care in the world. Without knowing.

"It means we're going to have to take more risks than we planned to. Starting from now." Alex moved away from the wall and extended his right arm, hand open, fingers extended forward, slightly tilted.

Purple light started collecting in it, while a magic circle inscribed itself in the air in front of it. Unknown symbols were written between the outer circle and the inner circle, six of them, with a series of spikes pointing inwards decorated the inside of the inner circle.

"I'm gonna aggro one enemy and attract it near here, then you're going to try and fight it, while I offer what support we can. We need at least enough Demon Blood to get at least the Purple Orb, maybe a couple of techniques for you. Ready?"

As soon as Sol nodded, Alex pointed at one of the Marionettes - one dressed in green - that was on the fringes nearer to them and shot.

The bullet of magic flew almost faster than what their eyes could follow, hitting the head of the Marionette and cratered half of the wooden monster's head. Not that it killed it. It only made it turn towards them, head turned ninety degrees to the side.

Then, with a cackle of wood on wood, it threw itself towards the duo.

Sol began to move along the demonic puppet's side. For a moment he saw the demon telegraph a high swing and moved out of the blade's path, bringing his hand axe down on the extended limb. The axe bit deeply, but the Marionette pulled back and swung again. Sol was forced to backpedal before throwing himself at the demon, striking at once with both weapons.

He aimed the hand axe at its head and drove the dagger into its side. The marionette reeled back, axe still buried in its mockery of a skull, while Sol forced it off balance, driving it to the floor all while repeatedly stabbing the demon with the dagger. He didn't realize it at the time but he had started to yell with each strike. It finally stopped moving, and Sol staggered to his feet.

"Holy… holy shit, that was… I killed it… I killed it!" He yelled with no small degree of shock and excitement. "We can do this, we can do this." The whole thing exploded into nothingness, leaving only a few red orbs that were soon moving towards Sol, adding themselves to his wallet. The body that had been left behind felt lesser, somewhat, and a quick check around the room showed that not every time that a demon died, the body remained after giving up its red orbs, sometimes they vanished.

"Yeah, you did. How do you feel? Tired?" Alex had moved a bit forward, being nowhere near enough to help - at least as a distraction - in case things were starting to go bad.

"Because we need to continue. Without using the granted power, we're going to lag behind in farming the red orbs and I have no idea how much time we're going to need to get the amount of Demon Blood we need."

"A little winded, but good yeah. I can see why Dante has so much fun fighting demons. But yeah, no, you're right. We have to move and make up the difference. I will cover you if need be."

Sol finished before spotting another marionette. "And I've got an idea. I'll call that one over, distract him, and you take him out. Cool?" Sol asks.

"I'll try. Let me prepare the spells now, so that I can try and take them out as soon as possible." Alex started murmuring something, two magic circles appearing above both of his hands, with the energy inside collecting slowly, forming the bullet.

"They are ready. I'm gonna try and see if I can charge them up, but I'm not sure I'm going to make it work. Feel free to go and aggro it, if you want." The long-haired guy nodded at Sol and focused, beads of sweat slowly starting to condense on his forehead.

Sol returned the nod and began to step out of Alex's line of fire. "Hey! Hey you! Yes, you rickety sticks!"

The Marionette turns and begins to shamble toward Sol, not realizing his occasional glances toward Alex.

"That's right! I killed your buddy, took its blood too! What are you going to do about it!?" Sol taunted the demon.

The Marionette's shamble turned into a full charge as it lunged towards Sol.

"Now's your shot Alex, waste this fodder." Sol thought as continued to move away from the bladed limbs.

"Left. Right. Left. Lunge. Right. Left… Right… Lunge… Left…" Alex followed the moments of the Marionette and, the moment it moved right to attack, he shot the first of the charged bullets. It slammed into the side of the monster with a small explosion, destroying half of the body of the monster. That unbalanced it and made it overcompensate on the other side. Which was exactly what Alex was hoping it would happen.

The second bullet hit the Marionette in the neck, destroying the upper part completely. The wooden mannequin wobbled and took another step forward, before falling on the ground, splintering completely and exploding into red orbs. Those went to Alex.

He was smiling at Sol, before folding on himself, his insides were on fire, throat completely dry, head thumping painfully. A series of dry heaves were enough to make him want to puke, but nothing came out of his mouth, only a few strands of saliva splattering on the ground.

"Remind me to never get on your bad side." Sol said to Alex while offering a hand.

"We still have a long way to go, but if we keep this up we should start getting a good amount of orbs. Maybe if we're lucky we could find one of those red orb pillars and get a good amount of them out of it."

Alex looked up from his kneeling position on the ground, smiling sickly at Sol, grabbing his hand to get up, before freezing. And then pointing upwards, to a ledge that was almost invisible from the ground, unless someone happened to look up from a certain side of the room.

Even then, they wouldn't notice what was on it, unless they managed to be at the very edge of the room, like the duo was. On it, there was a faint purple glow from the ledge. A full Purple Orb was resting on it, without anyone the wiser.

"Can you see that?" Alex asked, voice low. "If we can reach that…"

"Then you'll have a better time casting and recovering from your spells." Sol said before looking around, "And I guess no one put two and two together."

"Unless we can split it between the two of us, then yes." Alex said, before turning his head to the side and spitting the saliva on the ground. With violence.

Alex looked around and… yes, the rest of the group was still doing pretty well. They were working in small groups, but the amount of Red Orbs that each single person received was pretty low. And the whole thing was causing a few… problems.

Mostly attrition, if the way some groups were discussing - literally shouting, in one case - on the small amounts of red orbs still on the ground was any indication of what was happening.

"I have the feeling that the first death will be at the hand of a human, not a demon. Wouldn't that be a funny thing?" Alex murmured, leaning on Sol to avoid falling down. His stomach was still cramping painfully and the dizziness was slow to go away, but he was recovering. Bit by bit.

"Anyway, I don't think it's a good idea for us to go and try to take it right now. First, we don't have a way to reach it. Second, we don't want to attract attention to the hidden Orbs, it would end badly for us. And probably for everyone else that is going to take it, it could cause a riot and infighting. More than it's already happening, I mean. It's callous, but I want to survive, damn it." His knuckles were white, fists closed, and he was shaking a little, but he looked serious and determined.

As much as he could while being in the literal Hell.

Sol slowly nodded before responding, "Yeah, those hidden orbs will be a huge help in the long run, but you're right about the other people." Sol said worriedly.

He'd seen enough interpersonal relations, between work and life, to know those tones of voices. It was a bastard combination of the last laugh mentality coupled with 'I'm right and you can't say otherwise' ideology. Bad shit was going to come from those spats and he just knew in the back of his mind that a fight was going to break out sooner or later.

Sol began to speak quietly, "I'm not a betting man by trade, but I'm guessing this is how that first death will probably go down. Some of those jocks are going to get into it, maybe they'll 'think' they heard the other say something and that'll set them off. They'll have it out and one misaimed punch or kick, and someone's forever down and out." He took a moment to look at the other members before continuing.

"Business guys and gals will figure out things real quick and definitely view this in the most cutthroat way possible. Probably use the more malleable jocks and the generally nice people as fodder before dropping them. They get the power, they fight amongst themselves and the demon profits."

Sol's eyes glanced back up to purple orb briefly and then back to Alex. "We'll let em trail ahead slightly. Claim anything to sell it and then… Figure out how to get up there." With a small tsk, Sol added. "I should have seen if I could have bought Air Hike."

Alex looked at Sol with his lips turned into a smirk and a laugh in his eyes. "At least you have shoes. I'm in socks." He lifted a foot to show the thick socks that were already starting to get slightly soggy and dirty.

"I wonder if we can get equipment from the Statue. I mean, you got weapons, so it should be doable. Are those enchanted with anything or are just normal weapons? Well, beyond being divinely granted, I mean." He pointed at the axe and the dagger, curious.

"I wouldn't say no to a pair of good socks and boots… maybe even some armor. Anything that can help me, anyway." And he had a good reason to say this, considering how he was dressed: for a leisure night at home, not for a survival game in hell.

"Maybe, but I doubt these are anything other than basic weapons. We'll probably need something far more worthwhile than simple arms to get through this. To be fair, I'd like a pair of nice boots, but the armor is a better option." Sol said, looking back at the crowds and at possible exits.

"You think with this possibly being the Qliphoth, we'd see anything from the past? We have the Marionettes here, so maybe, I don't know, a memory of Mallet Island would be here? That could be an armor source." Sol posed the question to Alex.

"I… honestly don't know. I mean, I know that the bloodsucking tree broke the dimension between Earth and Hell. It clearly broke more than that." Alex gestured at the room they were in, in lieu of an explanation. "On the other hand, this place is controlled by whatever demon has summoned us, so… Maybe?" He shrugged.

Then his eyes landed on the remains of the corpses of the Marionettes that the rest of the group - still all alive, although some had accrued a few more wounds - had left behind after getting the Red Orbs.

"Do you think we can use the remains for something? I mean, if I remember correctly, it's just possessed wood, but it's still wood that has been possessed and animated by a demon. Maybe it counts for something?" His question hung in the air between them, while the rest of the room kept going down in a spiral of violence and destruction.

The room was very big.

Sol snapped his fingers in clarity. "You've got magic right? Maybe to help with the strain you need a focus, I don't know, like a wand or a staff. If those marionettes have been steeped in demonic magic, especially if they were pulled from Mallet, then that could definitely be something."

Sol tucked the dagger into his belt before continuing. "I'll hack a limb or two off the one you just killed, I mean it might not be a Devil Arm but maybe it will fall under the 'you kill it, you buy it' idea, no?"

"Right of Conquest. I think the Voice had said something like that at the start, yes." Alex nodded, before pointing at one of the Marionettes that had just dropped down from the ceiling. "I'm good for a couple more shots. And we don't have the Red Orbs necessary, so. Let's grind some Blood, shall we?" And he grinned at Sol, teeth in full display.

Sol nodded before setting Alex on the ground and starting on the Marionette Alex killed. As he began to hack away at the leg of the intact side, he kept trying to see if the axe head was beginning to chip. Realizing that that would probably cost him a finger or several, he resumed cutting normally until the leg came off.

Looking at the severed limb, Sol merely grimaced at the grisly puppet leg before leaving it and the dagger with Alex.

"Right, I'm going to see if I can't do the same with the marionette I killed. Probably get some sort of makeshift pick-axe-scythe hybrid thing. But a weapon is a weapon, and it's got to be tempered through demon magic." Sol said before heading towards his respective kill.

"I'm going with support from afar. Oh, try and see if you can get some of the clothes they have on them, maybe we can use it for… something. I don't know." Alex shrugged, before putting the limb to the side and starting to charge a spell to destroy a demon. They did need the Red Orbs, after all.

*****************************************

After around an hour of fighting, the amount of demons that were appearing had lowered and against what the rest of the group was doing, they hadn't returned to the Divinity statue even once.

At least, not until they had managed to get around 1.000 Red Orbs each. Which sounded like a lot, but the Marionettes dropped a few of them each time they died, which helped.

"You go first, I need to organize all these spoils of war." Alex panted a little, dropping the collection of wooden limbs and cloth that they had gained from the monsters near the Statue, in two - more or less - neat piles: one for him, one for Sol.

"Remember: Nothing with an 'L' in parenthesis."

"Right, afterwards, I'll start cutting bandages and the like, never know right?" Sol responded.

With that, Sol touched the lion statue and found himself back in the white void with the statue.

"Okay, Mistress of Time and Space, make my day. Abilities please?"

The two windows opened again and Sol scrolled down looking for that one ability, only to stop and grimace when he saw the price.

"2,000 Red Orbs? Really? All right… back to items then."

The window closed and reopened to show the familiar item with Sol making a clear effort not to go anywhere near the Demonic Strengthening options. He was about to purchase another Blue Orb for another vitality boost when he noticed that the price had doubled.

"What? But… oh that's right, the price doubles on each purchase. I bet if you could answer me, you'd tell me that the Demonic Strengthening price stays as it is, wouldn't you?"

The statue, naturally, said nothing.

"Right, I'm saving my 1,000 orbs ma'am, because I absolutely intend to grab Air Hike when I can. Unfortunately, I think that concludes our business. See you next time."

The void receded and Sol found himself back in the previous room. He began with, "2000 for Air Hike, wanted to get myself another Blue Orb instead, but I completely forgot that the price doubles each time. Any luck with the marionette pieces while I was gone?"

Alex shrugged from his kneeling position on the ground. "More or less. I've managed to divide the whole piles in limbs, what few weapons we managed to get and clothes with no mismatch. Try taking these and see if they unlock some new option?" And he passed Sol a few of the blade weapons in the group, specifically the curved ones. "I think they should be able to update your axe. Try it."

"Sure, maybe that'll work." Sol said before carefully grabbing a few of the blades and touching the statue.

The white field returned and Sol addressed the statue immediately. "I know, I know. But I'm not here to haggle for Air Hike or a Blue Orb. I'm looking to see if I can enhance the hand axe you gave me earlier? I even brought some materials that may help.

There was silence before a new window opened. Sol could see his hand axe and an option next to it, stating Enchant, 500.

"Half my wallet huh? Well, I can't say you don't have a way of keeping customers coming, or at least I hope you do. Do you need these weapon pieces as well?" Sol asked as he pressed the option.

The marionette blades disappeared as his red orb count dropped to 500. Sol noticed a faint glow on his hand axe and after inspecting it, noticed the blade looked cleaner, sharper even. He also noticed the price for further enchantment increased to 1,000. He merely gave the statue a flat stare before saying his goodbyes.

As his vision took back the hellish cavern, he stated simply "500 red orbs for a basic enchantment. I'm keeping the rest though, because a double jump is still a double jump."

"That sounds like a good idea. Also, I'm gonna check if there's an option to get some physical enhancement that is not using the Loser option." Alex nodded, before grabbing the limbs and touching the statue.

White bloomed in his vision and gold screens appeared in front of him.

It still defaulted to the Demonic Strengthening Options. Which was a very good scam, he had to admit.

"Can I see weapon options, please? Something to enhance magic, maybe." He asked the statue with politeness, still unsure if it was something that influenced things, but not willing to risk angering the Divinity behind the statue.

Weapons:
Basic Staff: 200 Red Orbs
Basic Scepter: 150 Red Orbs
Basic Wand: 100 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Staff: 700 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Scepter: 650 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Wand: 600 Red Orbs

There were other options, but nothing that interested Alex right now. Maybe one of the Bladed Staves would be useful, but not right now. An image of a wooden staff with glowing purple-red lines twisting up and down the shaft appeared when he selected the option.

"Costly. But I NEED a weapon and this one doesn't use the Loser option, so Basic Enchanted Staff it is." A click and the option was purchased. A moment later, a thought struck him.

"Can I see Physical Enhancement, please? Not the Default option. Anything that doesn't contain the (L) tag. Please." His polite request prompted the screen to vanish and get substituted by another one.

Physical Enhancement:
Basic Enhancement: 5.000 Red Orbs.

"Nope, never mind." Alex closed the store instantly, not even looking under the first option, only to find himself in front of Sol with what was a clearly magical staff in his hands and a realization hitting him all of sudden...

"...I forgot to check the clothes." His voice was flat. Then, he perked up, although his following sentence was clearly sarcastic.

"But, hey! Good news, we can still get the physical enhancements without the demon's powers! They just cost ten times as much."

Sol sighed at that, "That would make sense… still convinced that the L price doesn't change." He then stopped, gave a thoughtful look, and then continued. "Which means if the price doesn't change, then everyone who took that option could have a 3x boost in one singular area or a boost across. If it does double its price per purchase, then the boost is still significant but less than it could be. Either way, that is one hell of a deal considering the other option."

He began to cut strips of ruined cloth with his hand axe before saying. "I am still saving for my Air Hike though, I want that double jump."

"Yeah, definitely. Still, without that enhancement, your jump will just be one of a normal, unenhanced human. Still, better than nothing, I guess." Alex shrugged, before turning towards the room where the sounds of fighting were starting to slow down.

And, all of sudden, everything fell silent.

"I… am afraid of checking it. But we gotta see what is happening, right? Not having information would be a bad situation to be in. And yet…" Alex grimaced, before starting to walk towards the opening.

"Maybe let's try to not get seen. Just… in case, you know." Sol responded, trepidation heavy in his voice.

Looking into the area where the last battle was held, there were marionette bodies everywhere. Broken by the hands and feet of those who had been in the room prior, it was… not completely a bloodless battle but damn close, except for one spot.

Towards the edge of the room, were two figures. The first and more noticeable of the two was a larger marionette, garbed in red clothing and bringing its blade down on a person. It was one of the jocks and by the tears in the marionette's clothes, it seemed that he tried to rip it to pieces before being cut down.

Mindlessly, the demon kept swinging into the corpse and Sol whispered quietly, "It's been a while since I played through Mallet, but aren't marionettes supposed to be, you know, not like that?"

"Honest truth: I've never played the first game, but I did a wiki dive. I think I remember something about multiple variants, with one stronger than the others." Alex whispered back at his companion.

In the meantime, the Marionette - a Bloody Mari - kept slashing against the still moving corpse. Maybe it was just the last spasms of a dead body, maybe the guy was still alive, kept aware and breathing from the demonic power that had been lent to him. Just so that he could try and struggle to the end, without a real chance, but with the impression of having the possibility to win. To survive.

One hand slapped against the side of the demon and the creature just twisted its head towards it, before swinging the curved blades held in its hands, cutting it off at the wrist. Then, the Bloody Mari just kept swinging down on the body.

Until the body started shining. And the human just… exploded. Into harmless indigo light - and threads of smoke that vanished into the air - leaving behind red orbs landing all around the demon, who turned towards its next prey, a girl that was frozen in horror.

"Oh, fuck." Alex's eyes were wide as saucers, while the rest of the people in the room were starting to move once again. "Fuck, fuck, fuckity fuck."

"Blast him," Sol stated before grabbing his weapon. "I'll distract him."

As soon as he said that, Sol was up and running to the side. After a few paces, he swapped the dagger's position and threw it as hard as he could at the Bloody Mari. The dagger flew through the air in a beautiful arc, before striking the demon pommel side.

"Fuck." was the only word out Sol's mouth, before he began to taunt the demon. "Well, come on then, second servings right here!"

The Bloody Mari turned towards Sol, while the rest of the people - One Hundred and Eight people, assuming the victim was the only one dead yet - stood there, watching, stunned. It was like they hadn't even considered the possibility of one of them dying. Like all of this, the entire situation was a simple game.

Alex grabbed the staff in the middle, before pointing it at the demon. A magic circle appeared at the tip, before shooting forward, hitting the hand that the marionette was using to move the weapon, attempting to throw it towards Sol.

"Nine shots!" Alex shouted, before moving the staff slightly and clearly trying to follow what was happening, eyes squinting and focused on the situation.

"Right!" Sol shouted back before partially closing the distance slightly and picking up the dropped weapon. It was another dagger, longer than Sol's but rust-covered and slightly unwieldy in his hands.

As the Bloody Mari approached, Sol waited, trying to bait an attack. The Bloody Mari swung its right arm and Sol dodged to its left, returning the rusted dagger into the Bloody Mari's side, before quickly moving away from the retaliatory back-swing.

Another magical bullet hit the side of the head of the Bloody Mari, removing maybe a third of it and making the stronger marionette turn towards Alex, without caring about Sol. Even if he was right there.

Sol took the opportunity to two-hand the hand axe and drive into the back of the Bloody Mari's head. The enchanted blade driving deeper than before and freeing itself more easily, allowed Sol to swing several more times. By the time the Bloody Mari had fallen like a string less puppet, there was hardly anything left of its head.

As it fell, not only did the red orbs it carried become part of Sol's wallet but so too did the ones from the fallen jock. There was silence from the other humans as Sol looked around.

"What!?" Sol asked the crowd. "You all thought this was a game!? You all think you can punch your way through all this? We gotta think people, we're in hell right now. No room for fuck ups!"

Alex grimaced at the shout that Sol had just given to the others, but another thing attracted his attention: from the ceiling, more Bloody Mari's were starting to descend, fast, sliding down the threads that controlled that specific kind of monster.

"Look above!" Another bullet hit the nearest one to Alex, one that was poised to land on some cocky teenager. Which would have been… a massacre, probably. "More of the same monster!"

While he was shouting, he didn't have any kind of thought about the situation. He was purely focused on surviving. And trying to not think about how several of those people in the room wouldn't.

And those were just Marionettes. One of the weakest enemies in this world. What would happen in front of worse demons?

Then, the Bloody Mari's landed. And the massacre started.

True, the others were now moving, either by moving away or moving towards them, some even sporting greedy looks, clearly remembering the amount of Red Orbs that Sol had gained, but most of them were just trying to survive. And to survive, they would need to eliminate the enemy.

A very simple, very primal Them vs. Us situation.

A very dangerous one, too. Because, with groups already forming, Alex was already fearing the moment the whole thing would devolve into a pseudo-situation of petty warlords lording over the rest.

If not at this moment, then when the hunger started growing. There was no evident food anywhere in sight, if one discounted the walls and the floors. Well, and the other people around.

Sol quickly made his way back to Alex, axe and knife out. Covering the spell caster, and with a shaky 'I can't believe I'm saying this' grin, Sol spoke.

"Well, as the man himself once said. 'This party's getting crazy! Let's Rock!'"

 

[Atma]

The boss fight - if one could call it like that, considering that the Bloody Mari's were just a little notch above the normal Marionettes - ended with three heavily wounded people, five fractured bones, an unknown number of lesser wounds and a few Red Orbs for everyone.

Which was probably the thing that made everyone angry. At the situation, at each other, at the monsters. They were just… angry.

It started with a combination of curse laden muttering and whispers. The majority of the people left standing, only by the infernal grace of their unknown benefactor, began to talk among themselves. Most of the people attempted to keep their voices low enough so as to prevent other groups from listening in. This normally would have worked in a calmer, more sedate setting.

However, with the reality of the situation setting in and the loss of several of their members, whispers soon gave way to shouting.

"Those belong to me!" One voice shouted.

"Bullshit! I didn't see you kill it!" Another voice, in a different group but answering a similar sentiment, responded.

"Everyone just calm down!" An authoritative voice called.

"You're going to let him speak to you like that! Grow a damn spine!"

Throughout the area, more of these shouts began to make themselves known and it didn't seem like there was much to stop them. And like a powder keg, someone was eventually set off.

From one of the crowds, two figures broke rank, landing blows on each other that in other circumstances would be more dangerous. Now, it was more of a show force. One was a man in a formerly high quality, but a now torn, business suit. His tie being used by his opponent to keep him close. The other was a similarly dressed woman who was desperately trying to choke her opponent. The tie eventually tore apart and sent the two to the floor away from each other.

Tired, but still glaring daggers at each other, they arose and began to address the crowd equally, both attempting to out speak the other.

"Listen!" The man began while rubbing at his neck. "If we all work together, I can assure you that we can create a plan of action that will…"

"That will get you all killed!" Spat the woman. "I've worked with this bastard for over ten years, and I know damn well, he wouldn't hesitate to throw you under the bus."

"Like you're any better!? I know what you did to Terence and Andi over the Kinler deal." He looked back to the crowd. "If you follow her, I can assure you she won't hesitate to leave you out to dry."

This continued for several more minutes and people actually began to congregate around both speakers. Maybe it was demonically enhanced charisma, maybe it was the need to follow a strong leader, or maybe some of the people didn't know any better, but a good chunk of the people began to form two camps.

There were however the outliers, two groups to be exact. The larger of the two groups was populated by an almost entirely high school to early college age crowd. A large guy who must have dumped everything into enhancing his strength stood at the front with both arms spread to his side. His now massive wingspan, preventing anyone from stepping beyond his presence.

The high school crowd was a more blended group. Signs of physical enhancement were obviously present as well as a gracefulness that probably wasn't there a few hours ago. The big jock turned to his group and began to speak.

"Look, they talk a big game, but they're pencil pushers! They don't have what it takes to be a part of the team, but if we set our plays right, we can do this. Who's with me!?"

Several jocks in the crowd wearing partially ruined jackets and jerseys hollered in agreement, before moving themselves to the edge of the group and funneling them closer for a bizarre team huddle.

And then, there was Alex and Sol, the only two people in the entire affair to not follow any of the groups. Silently, trying to not catch any attention, Alex took a few careful steps back, keeping his new staff off the floor. Watching the situation degenerate without doing anything.

Mostly because it was a powder keg ready to go off at the slightest spark. And, considering the situation, anything could be a spark.

"I think…" He whispered to Sol, low and slowly. "That we need to take a couple of steps back and let them go their way." The grim look on his face was a clear expectation of things going to the pits.

"Honestly, if the escalation continues like that, I doubt that they will survive for more than three rooms. Four, tops. Two, if we encounter a proper boss." The down turned edges of his lips were enough signal for his mood.

"Yeah, no kidding. We just let uh, let them be on their way and maybe we will try to get 'that' for you." Sol said, stressing the word 'that' ever so slightly. Before looking back at the crowd.

"I think the business people will be the biggest issue in the long run, though. Not the groups, just those two." Sol continued.

Alex nodded, not moving his eyes from the two 'leaders' in silk. The man was preening more than a peacock, while the woman seemed almost feral.

"I'm almost expecting a clichè betrayal where the two of them have been working together all the time. Like we are in court or in a business deal and not in a life or death situation. Well, life or soul, considering… Demons." Alex shrugged, before starting to look around, apparently uncaring of what was happening.

"I'm around 450 Red Orbs and I'm aiming for Basic Magical Knowledge. Which is more of a passive boost than a technique, but, hey, every little bit, yeah? How about you?"

Sol paused before going silent, and responding "I think I'm at 1,700 Red Orbs… I'm holding out for another 300 for that sweet sweet air hike. Honestly though, I wouldn't be surprised if they were planning that, they seemed to mutually know those Terence and Andi fellows enough to be on a first name basis with them."

Sol gave a quick glance over to the sports crowd before looking away. "Though Mr. Spo… that term for sports anime, guy. The one who wouldn't be out of place in a 1950's horror movie, he and his actual crew may be something to be worried about. You think we can get some more red orbs out of the Bloody Mari's?" Sol finished with a question.

"It depends on how it works. Notice, we have been here for a while since the last demon appeared and no more had come. Something's telling me that it's… gonna be bad." Alex grimaced, before looking up to the ceiling.

Nothing.

And yet, the air was subtly colder. Almost like the temperature had dropped.

"Yeah, very, very bad. I'm just hoping it's not Boss Monster bad. If it is, we're all dead, no if or buts."

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH…."

Appearing with the cacophony of laughter, a series of five abnormally large skulls, marked with demonic runes, began to float in, all letting out a bitter, scornful laugh. One of the people who had been injured by the previous Bloody Mari attacks attempted to stand and fight.

In defiance of reason, the Sargasso closest to that individual began to mimic the act of taking a deep breath. The person must have realized something was coming and attempted to escape the potential threat. With the demonic enhancements and in top form, they more than likely could have made it. But they were weakened and in the process, faltered a single step. The skull let out a chill mist that froze the leg of the fleeing person solid. Unfortunately and to make matters worse, because they were in mid-step, the frozen limb was rooted to the ground. The person pitched forward, and their weight, combined with their forward momentum led to catastrophe.

There was a grinding, cracking noise, as the still warm flesh of the leg shore off its frozen half. The poor bastard fell to the ground screaming only for the same Sargasso to close the distance quickly. With a sickening crunch, the lower half of the person's body disappeared into an invisible gullet. The top half soon followed.

The demon seemed to bask in the taste before it and fellows turned towards the rest of the people.

"There we go." Alex said, dejected, with his shoulders slumped, before he pointed the staff towards one of the skulls and cast his bullet spell. The slam of the magical energy hitting the bone of the demon skull and cratering it - although not enough to break it fully - was enough of a wake up call.

"Apparently, they didn't remember what you said to them before." Another bullet flew, this time joined by the rest of the people attacking the group of skulls, some yelling and shouting, some in silence, others crying or wailing.

After the two shots, Alex turned towards the other side of the room. "So, if I'm correct - and I've played this game more than once - more demons should appear on the other side. Hell is a bastard like that."

He wasn't wrong. Five new skulls appeared from a red seal hovering in the air, almost invisible on the fleshy background of the room.

"Yep. A bastard like that." Three quick shots hit the front skull, shattering it to pieces before the remaining four turned and flew straight towards the duo.

"I have five shots remaining. I'm afraid I'll have to depend on you again, I'm sorry." Alex apologized, holding his staff firmly in his hands.

"No problem," Sol responded before he moved to the left side of the small horde. As he did, the Sargassos began to turn toward him. Sol threw his dagger at the nearest one, not caring if the dagger hit with the blade or pommel point. Ironically, the dagger struck true, and a section of the Sargasso's form shattered. As it floated back, Sol was on it, smashing it directly at the nose ridge, shattering the demonic skull.

Sol would have given himself a pat on the back if he didn't see the other Sargasso behind preparing its chill breath.

"You shit!" was all Sol said as he leapt further to his left, landing close to a dead Bloody Mari.

"Oh you boneheads, guess I'm going to be learning how to throw knives today!" Sol shouted before throwing one of the Mari daggers. The dagger did not land as cleanly as the previous one, but it did hit the socket and did seem to disorient the Sargasso long enough for Sol to attack. Several axe swings later, and all that bone was only shards on the ground.

In the meantime, using the time that Sol had bought him, Alex had been charging the bullets like before, one in his left hand and the other on the tip of the staff. When he shot them, both hit a skull - a different one for each - and it exploded violently, destroying both remaining skulls.

The amount of Red Orbs was more than the Marionettes, but not as much as the Bloody Mari, which made sense.

"I don't know about you, but I'm starting to get pretty hungry. And tired." Alex remarked, leaning on the staff with a slight tremble in his limbs, clearly using the piece of enchanted wood as support. He was pale and sweating slightly.

"Wanna go and see if the Divinity Statue can give us some food?" He was half joking, his lips raised in a smirk.

Sol looked back at the crowd, before nodding "I'd normally hate to leave these people like this, but I'm more afraid of them than for them. Besides, I just just hit 2,000. Double jump here I come." Sol said before really taking in what Alex just said, "I guess spell casting takes a lot more out of you than I realize. Yeah, let's get there now. Maybe if we're lucky they'll have moved on by the time we get back."

"I doubt it. And… yeah? It's more that every spell I use is, like… weighing on me. I can still feel the demonic power that I got lent, but I'm not touching it. So, the energy from these spells comes from me. And from the language, I'm not sure I understand it completely." Alex shrugged and kept pace with Sol, giving the mob - and the other demons that were appearing - a rather large berth.

"I'm with you about them, though. Demons, I know they will kill me. Humans can be much scarier if they break. Let's just hope it won't happen.."

After a few moments of walking, they were back in the starting room, the Divinity Statue still there. Alex simply let himself slide down on the ground near it, waving his hand at Sol.

"I need to take a moment to breathe. You go on and take your new trick. I'm curious to see what happens."

"Alright." Sol said before touching the statue. Back in the void, Sol addressed the statue.

"Okay, ma'am. You know what I want. Show it to me."

A window popped up showing Personal Enhancement with the Demonic Enhancement options front and center. Sol merely leaned to one side of the window and gave the statue a flat stare.

The window disappeared and reappeared displaying Abilities.

"Thank you, but I'm not buying into those demonic options. I'm not a chump who doesn't see the web and the spider. Physical enhancement, the 5,000 red orb variant is a future potential investment, but I need movement options first and foremost."

With that said, Sol pressed the option for Air Hike, and saw his red orb counter drop to 0. As it did, he felt a strange sensation in his feet. It was as if the expression, spring in your step, was a legitimate thing. The feeling dissipated, mostly, and with it, Sol gave his goodbyes.

Upon seeing hell again, Sol took a few steps back and jumped. The moment he hit his peak he could feel something underfoot, something for him to jump from. So, he did and his jump height doubled.

"Woo hoo! Double jump!" Sol shouted excitedly before descending and not sticking the landing.

"Oh shi!.." He lay in a small heap for a few moments before staggering up. "Why does Dante and Nero make this shit look easy?"

"Because they are part demons?" Alex said, cheekily, in between snickering and trying to stop his laugh from coming out. "Also, you should have known that everything that goes up, must come down."

In the end, he managed to take several deep breaths and calm himself, before touching the statue and finding himself in the white space.

"Yes, yes, default options. Put them away, thank you very much." As with Sol, the screen vanished, until Alex asked for the Magic section. A list that didn't seem to end appeared in front of him, but he limited his attention to the start.

Magic:
Enochian Magic Level 1 – Basic: 500 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 2 – Intermediate: 2,500 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 3 – Advanced: 5,000 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 4 – Master: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 1 – Basic: 500 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 2 – Intermediate: 5,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 3 – Advanced: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 4 – Master: 20,000 Red Orbs

Alex seemed lost in thought for a moment, before he started talking to himself.

"Ok, so. Basic magic knowledge sounds like an introductory course to magic, the basics and so on. The Enochian version must be the specialized one. I think I would be better served in choosing the Enochian one, at least for now, to have a better foundation in it. Once I have more Red Orbs, I can take the other one."

He had only 750 Red Orbs, so he couldn't take both. He tapped the Basic Enochian option and a headache started pounding his head in moments.

"Yeah, I don't know what to expect." Grimacing, he moved one hand to his stomach. "Damn, I really want something to eat, there's nothing here…"

The screen in front of him changed and showed a new list. It was titled 'Miscellaneous'.

Miscellaneous
Care Package A: 200 Red Orbs – A set of sturdy clothes for use in battle
Care Package B: 300 Red Orbs – A pack of generic food rations
Care Package C: 400 Red Orbs – A set of basic first-aid supplies
Care Package D: 600 Red Orbs – A set of armor from an earlier time.

Alex blinked at the statue, unsure of what had just happened, only to try and tap on the food option, before remembering that he was 50 Orbs short.

"Well, next time, I guess. Thank you for your help." He bowed at the statue before he was back in Hell with Sol.

"So, good news and bad news." He turned fully towards his friend. "Good: the statue sells food. Bad: I'm 50 orbs short." And he shrugged in a 'What can you do' expression.

"Well, we'll just have to save up for that next time round." Sol said simply. "Knowing our luck may very well come after the next fight, so, a victory meal." He finished before noticing the increased volume of sound from the other room.

He gave a cautious look to Alex before taking at his axe and dagger and approaching the entrance. Looking in, he did not like what he saw.

The skulls were dead, their fragments all but cast to the four winds. The fighting that was still going on was verbal spats between the various remaining people, though Sol noticed that the sports crowd were not there.

"You fuck, those were my orbs!" Someone shouted.

"They were my friend's!" Someone else responded.

"Yeah!? Well they're not using them anymore!"

To be fair, the 'friends' mentioned really weren't using them. Beyond the massive skull fragments, there were partially broken remains of ice sculptures that Sol knew damn well weren't there before. It didn't help that besides some of them, there were bloody remains of half-eaten body parts, and unfortunately, there were alot of these bodies throughout the room. Before Sol could try to get a better look, the yelling grew in intensity.

Several people from the two suit gangs were starting to go at it like a public pub brawl. This lasted for only a few minutes before a shout from either side, and two rather large figures pushed through the crowds and separated them. The figures were obviously people from both sides who had physically boosted themselves significantly and as if to say "I'm holding their leash," the leaders were coming.

The female leader was first on the scene and even from the distance he was, Sol could see her hands balling into fists. She seemed to share a look with her counterpart who had just been a step behind, before motioning her muscle to haul the instigator before her.

The instigator, a youngish man with blond hair that looked like it was once slicked back, but now fell across his eyes, tried to struggle out of the grip before realizing what was going on.

"Look, boss," he began, a slight tremor audible in his voice. "We needed those orbs, the glasses guy got his share earlier before everything went to shit, I figured it was only rig…!"

He was cut off when the woman's fist buried itself in his gut. Before he could do anything else, the woman spoke.
"Do you understand what we're dealing with here? The opportunities we have here?" She asked, her voice like venom.

"Ma'am I…" He didn't finish as she backhanded him. Normally a hit like that would stun someone, maybe take a tooth or two even. However…

*CRACK!*

A sharp crack resonated through the room as his head fell limply to the side. His body then broke down into red orbs which flew into the woman.

"You always were disappointing Peter." She said a matter of factly before looking behind her.

Her counterpart had his hand on his side's instigator while tapping a Bloody Mari dagger on his shoulder. He spoke softly but forcefully.

"You see that? if you do that again, that's what's going to happen, understand?" The man asked in a patronizing manner.

"Ye..yes sir!" the office suit managed out.

"Good… good. As that other guy said, we're in hell, no one has room for fuck ups. No, we've spent too much time here. If we're going to escape this place, we'll need to start now. Not one step back." Their leader spoke.

There were some halfhearted protests, but the glint of his dagger stopped those dead in their tracks.

The other group seemed to shrink at the glare of their leader and began to grab whatever they could find that could pass as a weapon and made towards the exit.

Sol quickly backed out of the entrance way and looked at Alex with a pale face.

"Remember how you mentioned that the first death would be at human hands? Woman Boss just backhanded someone so hard, she snapped their neck. Also uh… they're taking my advice about not fucking up here. So… that may be a problem given their attitudes." Sol said as quickly removed his glasses and slipped them into his pocket.

"You can always count humans to be humans, after all." Alex proclaimed, looking both pale and green on his face.

It took a few minutes for both of them to recover. Then, once they were marginally calmer, something happened to send everything spiraling down again.

All three of the 'leaders' came inside the room with the Statue, noticing Alex and Sol sitting there, not doing anything. And, more importantly, not being with any other group.

"Hi there, how are you doing?" Sol said in a polite but obviously nervous way.

All three of them didn't say anything, just looked at the two: one with his weapons in his hands and the other leaning on a stick while sitting on the ground.

Until the college jock pointed at Sol with a smile on his face. "Heeeeey! You're that one that shouted at us when the red mannequin thing killed that guy!" He was panting slightly, sweat on his face, clearly just fresh out of the fight. The man and the woman, on the other hand, looked a bit more composed, but both of them narrowed their eyes towards Sol.

Sol blinked owlishly before responding, "Yeah, well my blood was up and everyone seemed to be stuck in place. Figured they needed something to break the shock of the large puppet-like creature, right?" Sol asked as he pulled the glasses from his pocket but did not put them on. He just left them hanging in the fingers of his off-hand.

"And I mean look what happened next, more of them showed up, along with those skull things. Can you imagine what would have happened if we were all still in a state of shock?" Sol asked while planting his main hand against his hip, close to the axe head that was looped into his belt.

"Right, Alex?" He asked while not taking his eyes off the three.

"Yeah. And who knows what will happen from now on?" Alex asked, rhetorically, keeping an expression of sadness on his face, turning slightly towards the group - as more of the others had come in the room - and shrugging slightly.

"Then you can certainly see why you should join us and try to…" The man started, but Alex raised a hand immediately.

"I won't be of much use to anyone. I'm diabetic, you see, and I don't have any medicine with me. So, it won't be long before I either faint or start shaking and then faint. I would just be a hindrance for whoever is near me. Sol has decided to stay with me until I… fall asleep. For comfort." Alex gulped, before looking away and then back at the others.

Who were now looking everywhere BUT at him.

"I'll move, so you can use the shop however you want. Good luck." Using the staff as a cane, he got up and started moving away, one hand grabbing Sol's elbow to make him move together.

"Yeah, we'll just keep everyone's back covered. I can't see worth a damn without my glasses, so I'd be horrible with you all."

Sol began to move alongside Alex before whispering, "Please tell me the diabetes was a lie because if not, we'll have to hope beyond hope that there's some demonic insulin around here."

Alex didn't say anything, just kept tugging Sol away, until they were on the very other side of the room, away from everyone else.

"Wasn't a lie. But I'm pretty sure I'm cured. Remember the Blue Orb?" And he cocked his head to the side, at the statue. "It's.. well, I know only a little bit from my basic magical knowledge, but I'm pretty sure that it's pure life. So, complete healing of any illnesses. The rest will probably heal everything else about us the more we advance down this path."

He shrugged. "What can you say? Magic." He ended in a singsonging voice, a grin painting his lips.

Sol gave a cautious smile. "Well, God, I hope that's true, might make sense why my vision improved. I meant what I said, I can't see anything very well at all without my glasses, or should I say couldn't. My eyes definitely got better after that blue orb hit… I was about two seconds from chucking my glasses at the first person to make a move if it came to that…"

He breathed a sigh of relief. "I can understand and rationalize killing demons, but people? I don't know if I'm ready to cross that line yet."

"Neither am I. Also, keep the glasses. I'm pretty sure that my sight got better, too, but still nowhere near perfect. Neither is yours, I'm guessing. I'm willing to suffer a bit of a headache until I can get it healed. I'm thinking that the Physical Strengthening should do the trick."

Before he could continue, the sounds of feet stomping on a squishy, fleshy floor came and the group of people remaining - still split in three - was marching towards the room where the Marionettes spawned. And they were clearly aiming for the room after that. Specifically, the giant door made of stone and covered in fleshy vines on a wall.

While they were passing near them, the female leader stopped for a moment, turning towards Sol, and tried to affect a sympathetic behavior.

"I'm sorry for your friend. I wanted to let you know that after he's… gone… you are welcome in our ranks. If you survive." And then she turned and returned at the head of the group.

Sol let the group pass before speaking, "Well, we know who the super bitch is… I feel like that statement is going to become a lot more literal soon. All right, we let them pass and get you that purple orb. More shots mean better crowd control after all."

"You're not going to hear me disagree." Alex muttered, looking towards the door. Under the combined strength of six people, the door slowly opened, showing a floor made of stone tiles, the same fleshy, squirmy walls, and another door, far, far in the distance. Then, the groups of people entered and the sounds of battle started again.

"Let's wait a few minutes and then try to take the Orb? I think You could use the Barrier spell I have as a leaping platform, so you can save one jump for later. Also, maybe use the axe as a sort of hook to grab the edge if you don't manage to reach it completely? Could work, no?" Alex proposed, getting up and stopping overplaying his previous illness.

"Yeah, I'll knock it down. I don't want to accidentally touch it and take it from you." Alex nodded at Sol's proposition and moved towards the nearest point where they could reach the upper platform.

The first attempt did not go as well as one may think. Was the barrier platform a good idea? Yes. Was the use of Air Hike a good idea? Also yes. The execution however…

"Fuck fuck fu…" Sol tried to as he missed his target, fell and landed at the edge of the barrier, tripping over said ledge, and falling back to the ground. He lay there briefly for a moment before getting up and grumbling.

"Oh non-demonic faust bullshit physical enhancement, you can't come soon enough. Okay… round two." Alex snickered slightly, before growing pensive.

"How am I going to get up there?"

*****************************************

Spoiler, not easily. Luckily for them, there were a lot of corpses of marionettes around. And a lot of cloth.

Plus what they had gotten before. So, now to create a rope…

******************************************

The axe sailed through the air in a solid arc, bloody red cloth streaming behind. It was Sol's second attempt at the throw from the barrier but at least he wasn't falling like an idiot. The axe struck the Purple Orb, which briefly wobbled in the air, before falling straight down.

"Okay!" Sol said triumphantly, "That's 1,750 you just saved and they did not."

"Assuming they even know that it's there." Alex smiled and grabbed the Purple Orb, way too paranoid of something happening at the last minute to wait.

The thing melted - for lack of another word - into him. And… he was… light.

For a single moment. He shone from the inside, curls of smoke-like purple light escaped from his mouth, eyes, ears, and nose, the shine illuminating all around him. He rose in the air for a second, a few inches and not more, before, slowly, returning to the ground.

Breathing heavily, Alex opened his eyes and smiled, wide, before calling a bullet spell to his hand: it came without problem, without charge time or anything else. Furthermore, he cast six in quick succession and he was still standing without even breathing heavily.

"I think I just got my first basic attack." Alex was clearly on the verge of laughing, no matter what.

"Alright, we have more options now." Sol said before dropping down from the barrier. So, let's see what's behind the door number stone."

Upon looking through the door, there was already a noticeable difference in the layout. Unlike the natural rock and flesh that dominated the previous two rooms, the architecture here was far more uniform. There was still an active demonic presence present with the flesh-like vines that seemed to be attached to and burrowing through the stonework, but all in all, it was at least more inviting.

Unfortunately, the door comment Sol made was a little more on the nose than he realized. As the hallway from the door extended and opened to a larger room with several archways clearly denoting an exit. The signs of battle were present but no human bodies. There were Bloody Mari's strewn about which bode for better and worse. However, most of the potential exits were bricked up, with only four 'open.' Not truly, however, as three of the four were sealed by walls of wailing spectral faces, leaving only one exit for Alex and Sol.

"Well, it seems someone is trying to either split us all up or prevent us from running back to the statue after every battle. What do you think?" Asked Sol.

He gulped, the high of the Purple Orb having been completely eliminated.

"I think that this looks a lot like a problem. That said, we need to choose where to go. If I remember correctly, we could open those seals with the Red Orbs, but it sounds like we don't have enough to do so, so… we can only go forward. Maybe we could farm a bit before moving so that we can upgrade ourselves a bit, but I don't know if it's going to work. Oh, right." He snapped his fingers, before pointing at Sol.

"Keep your eyes open and see if you can find anything secret like before." That said, he started moving forward, his staff held tight in his hands.

"Yeah sure." Sol responded, before walking to the walls and tapping his axe to them.

"Okay Sol, think. This isn't dark souls, so if you hit that, well then you've got a fight on your hands." Sol thought as he tapped each of the bricked up walls with his axe, producing zero results.

"So, the walls aren't budging meaning our only war forward seems to be door number 4."

Alex nodded, before stopping and pointing down a hallway that was in between two arches, right after the penultimate door and the last one. Hard to see, unless you were right near it.

"What's down that hallway? I think I can see a glow… and a corpse. Well, a hand. I don't know if it's attached to a corpse or an alive person, just unconscious." He stopped for a moment, before continuing, with a rather green look on his face.

"Or if it's attached at all."

Down the hallway was indeed a corpse, savagely mangled by something. However, the strangest thing was that the blood trail did not come from the main site of battle but rather the wall directly opposite the corpse.

Sol snapped his fingers and pointed at the wall. "Secret mission challenge room right? This guy must have accidentally touched the wall and… trapped in a demon room. What do you want to do?"

Alex looked at Sol like he had completely lost his head. "You want to try a challenge room while running on Permadeath?" His voice was slightly tilting towards the hysteric side of the spectrum.

"Yes, it could give us a truckload of Red Orbs, but… Oh, damn it. You've convinced me." Alex hung his head low, waving at Sol to go on.

"Alright," Sol said as he drew both weapons and touched the wall. There was a flash and the two found themselves in a similar room as the branching point. The stench of fresh blood stung their noses before a noise caught their attention. From the ground, four summoning circles manifested calling forth a set of Bloody Mari's.

"Well, I guess you guys are here for a little while longer." Sol said with a grimace.

"Fuck you and fuck me." Alex answered, before starting to focus, magic energy collecting on top of his staff in the form of a charged bullet.

Author's Notes:

Next chapter will be posted this coming Friday evening.

 

[Atma]

Sol began to move to the edge of the room, yelling and shouting to attract the Bloody Maris. Two of the Maris began to move in his direction. The other two though, Alex shot one of them and started to move in the other direction, already charging a second shot.

"That's right, this way!" Sol shouted again.

Internally however, "Okay… okay, now or never Air Hike…"

As one the Bloody Maris' lunged forward, Sol jumped, and jumped again, overtaking the first Bloody Mari and landing on the other. Forcing his full weight on the demon, Sol began to hack away at it until its head was destroyed. Looking back, he barely dodged the next attack, the blade making a small cut just above his brow.

Scrambling back, Sol tried to wipe the blood from eye before repeating the same trick. This time landing behind and taking the demon by the knees before finishing it off.

In the meantime, on the other side of the room, Alex was fighting in a more precise manner. Not because he was one of those calculator types that could read forward in a fight by three steps or more, it was simply because he had literally zero idea on how to fight, beyond half remembered martial arts lessons that he had taken years ago.

And, in opposition to what had happened during the room brawl before, the room where the four Bloody Mari had appeared was significantly smaller. So, he was blasting one with a charged magical bullet, then shot as fast as he could the other, charge another shot and repeat.

The monsters were made of wood, after all, and, even with the fact that they were ignoring the law of physics to a certain extent, wood was still light enough that a good enough blast or several smaller bolts were enough to push them back. So, he was basically juggling them while on the ground.

When Sol turned towards him, the first one had just exploded, while three more bolts had slammed in the second one, completely splintering the torso and sending it flying in all directions.

Alex, in the meantime, was panting heavily, white as a sheet with fear, and with a glint of determination in his eyes.

"You good man?" Sol asked, while trying to stem the bleeding with a ragged piece of Bloody Mari clothing.

"No. I just realized that we are horribly unprepared and that we need to get better fast if we want to have a chance to survive." Alex spit out, his hands firmly on the staff to keep himself up.

Without any words or noise, a mass of red orbs began to fall to the ground, as well as two more orbs. One was a pale white orb, smaller than the rest but no less bright while the other was… a fragment.

It was a quarter of a blue orb, sitting there innocently, waiting for someone to pick it up.
"Okay," Sol began, "So, I figure you should get the white orb, because you'll need it a helluva more than me. You want the blue orb fragment too?"
Alex gave Sol what could be considered a 'Are you stupid?' look.

"No, you get it. And all the others until you reach four fragments. You are the one that is melee all the time, not me. I really want you to survive, you know? For both emotional, altruistic and pragmatic reasons." After he was done with his tirade, he went and took the white orb, while the sea of Red Orbs split in two and sank into him.

"1.250 Red Orbs. I want some more to get the Physical Bonus, but, knowing myself, I will spend them in the Purple Orbs, Blue Orbs or something else. Doesn't matter right now."

The room around them melted away, like an orange being peeled, before they were back in the dead end of the hallway, with the mangled corpse. Alex blinked at it, before giving it a light tap with his staff.

The body exploded in Red Orbs.

"Right, corpses do that here. I didn't forget, but I kinda wanted to see if it worked even with the one that no one had… harvested." Then, he lapsed into silence, looking into the distance without saying anything else. "And isn't it telling that human corpses always disappear, while demon corpses sometimes remain?"

"Well, we'll…" Sol paused before continuing, "We'll try to see if we can't at least, I don't know, honor the memory of that person. Doesn't feel right just to let their remains be currency." Sol finished as he tossed the blue orb fragment between his hands before it faded into him. "Alright then, back to the main room?"

"Yeah. Wait." Alex took a single step before stopping. "Usually, didn't demons appear after finding a secret treasure or completing a bonus room?"

"Aw shit." Sol grumbled, "Let's see what we have to deal with."

The answer was… nothing. The antechamber was empty save for the signs of prior battle. With the only way forward being readily seen, Sol took a breath and stepped into the archway. Several moments later he came quickly looking at Alex with a nervous and fearful look.

"This door is to a staircase leading down." He said slowly before looking back at the entrance and muttering something just barely audible in the room.

"Down, down to hell and say that I sent you there..." Sol said shakily."

Alex… didn't exactly ignore what Sol was saying, but he was aggressively NOT thinking about it. Instead, he looked at Sol, at the way down and then back where they came from.

"One last stop at the Divinity Statue and then what is pretty obviously the boss?" He asked, hoping to color his tone.

"I mean, we have some more to spend, and it's always a good thing to be prepared, no?"

Yes, it was a stalling tactic. Yes, both he and Sol knew it. But that wasn't the right question. No, the right question was: would it work?

The path back was empty, and every so often Sol would begin to look up at the ceiling.

"We're heading down, this thing wants us to go further and further down. You think the others caught on to that?" He asked quietly.

Alex didn't stop until he was back in the main room. Only then, after checking thoroughly that it was empty of others, turned and looked at Sol.

"Short answer? No." He started walking towards the entrance to the starting room, where the Statue was. "Long answers: I'm pretty sure that anyone that is going to notice, is not going to say anything. If, and, or when they say anything, they won't be listened to, and if they are listened to, a crisis will make them forget it."

He finished with a shrug of his shoulder, before stopping in front of the statue. "At least, if we were in a story. I don't know if it's going to work or not, so… We'll see, I guess. After you." And he bowed theatrically, taking a step back.

"Are you sure? Well alright then." Sol said before touching the statue.

Looking upon the statue in the void, Sol began to think. He had 1,400 to spar, 100 shy of another blue orb… fuck it he needed something else to go with than failing at the throwing knife.

"Okay, weapons list please." He said simply before the window appeared.

He scrolled through quietly before stopping on an option.

"A little on the nose but what the hell, right?" He thought aloud before clicking on the option Basic Enchanted Handgun 1,000 Red Orbs. It materialized out of the air, a simple semi-automatic handgun with a holster.

"Okay, cool but we're not done yet. Miscellaneous please."

The window closed and reopened, revealing a small list of four items. Looking at his red orb count Sol grimaced slightly. "Only 400 left, I'd have liked to buy more but might as well get what's needed," before taking the Care Package C Option for the medical kit.

"Alright, I guess that'll be all for now." Sol said before reality snapped back into view.

"Okay, I've got a gun which I'll check in a bit, but more importantly, a med kit. I almost bought a vitality star, but figured that could be saved for more dangerous situations."

Alex blinked, before looking at his clothes. "You… didn't take armor?"

There was a moment of absolute silence before Sol dropped his new acquired items, clutched his heads and began to curse at himself. "I'm a certifiable fucking idiot… I'm going to say that I'll buy it next, but watch! I'll spring for a blue orb or, or a vitality star… Ahhh!!! Just, just spend well man. I need a moment."

Hesitantly, Alex patted Sol on his shoulders, before touching the statue.

Yes, the same default page appeared in front of him. Again.

Closing his eyes and praying for patience to the Watcher of Time, he moved away from the windows and went straight to Miscellaneous. He needed something.

"I have a bit more than 1.600 Red Orbs. But I need better clothes. So, Sturdy Clothes for me. then we move back towards the knowledge section and I'm gonna get the Basic Magic Knowledge, so those are 500 more gone. On the other hand, magic, so it's worth it."

He then stopped for a moment, before looking straight at spells. With 950 Red Orbs remaining, he couldn't take a lot, but there was something he could do.

"The upgrades to Bullet are… Ah, here we go. 500 for two bullets at once, 500 for faster fire rate, 600 for faster charging rate, 10.000 for Elemental effects… I didn't expect anything else, really. Also, all the upgrades are clearly the first stage, except the elemental one, so… Let's go with a faster firing rate." After purchasing the option, he was left with too little to do anything else. So, he bowed to the statue and returned back.

Before that, however, he was shown an image of him in his current clothes and then an image in him with his new clothes. Like a paper doll.

Choosing the new clothes instantly, he returned into the room with a pair of black boots that reached his knees, black jeans tucked into the boots to avoid flapping cloth, an elastic belt, a black undershirt and a purple shirt. Over it, a leather duster in black, with gold and purple embroidery.

"How do I look?" He smirked at Sol, deciding to not mention the furious headache that was plaguing him right now, with the knowledge on the basics of magic pushed in his head. They did help in making his spells a little bit stronger, but it was still painful.

Sol was wrapping his forehead in a bandage, before briefly glancing at Alex. "A lot better than me, that's for damn sure. Boots are a good touch too, great for keeping your ankles stable. Ow, dammit." He hissed as he finished the bandage. "That'll probably scar," he said before getting up.

"Well, from what I saw in it…" Alex started speaking, while testing the boots. They were perfectly tailored and didn't need to be broken in. Really magical. "There are two options for armor: these clothes, which are considered Sturdy Clothes. I have no idea how much resistance they will give to blades or similar, but I doubt they are going to do a lot beyond delaying something. Which is good enough for me, I mean. And true armor, I still have no idea what it means. Currently, my mental image is something like the Order of the Sword from DMC 4."

After that, he stopped in front of Sol, a pensive expression on his face. "Where do you think my previous clothes went?

"Well, when I upgraded the axe, the marionette blade went into it, so maybe it was less of you wearing new clothes and more, your old clothes were remade and enhanced to look like that? Who honestly knows, but hey silver lining, new wardrobe and like you said, you'll never need to break it in."

He breathed deeply before continuing "Are you ready to see what lies beneath?"

"Nope!" Alex answered, cheerfully, before turning and starting to walk towards the probable Boss Room. "But the world has never moved as I commanded, so let's go and try to survive. Possibly without the other seeing us. The less times we meet them, the less risk we are in."

His staff swished through the air in lazy arcs, energy sparking over the surface. Still, it was clear that it wasn't a proper demonic weapon. It was just an enchanted one, if the way the sparks came out of random places were any hint of it.

Still better than nothing, but less than the new gun that Sol had gained.

"Speaking of Bosses, how are you going to reload your gun?"

"It said Enchanted, so I'm guessing, more like hoping, it's like Lady's or Dante's pair. Just keep pulling the trigger. If anything it'll be a good way of drawing aggro while you blast whatever we see next into oblivion." Sol stated as they eventually made their way into the branching room.

Sol continued, "Alrighty then, you think this place has nine floors, like in the Comedy. Would this be the first floor and we just keep heading down and down until it just becomes one big ice rink?"

"I really hope not. That being said, I never read the Comedy, so I don't know." Alex muttered, looking around to see if any demon was going to appear in the darkened hallways. For now, the coast was clear. For now.

Still, their steps echoed in the silent air, while the smell of blood and dust was stronger than ever.

The whole thing came soon to an end when they found the stairway down. It was in the same place as before, but it was rather short and brought them to what looked like a balcony made of stone, with what once were comfortable cushioned chairs and an elegantly sculpted balustrade.

Now, it was half destroyed and covered in dust. As well as strange, fleshy looking branches and veins, slightly sticky to the touch and uncomfortable warm. Even then, it was not what was important right now.

No, what was important was that, under them, on what looked like a stage, there were the other people fighting against a big monster made of wood that was also on fire. All three groups.

The University Crew was hanging mostly back, looking like they had the bigger amount of ranged attackers, along with a few defenders that stood in front, along with their Leader.

The Businessman's group were an even mix that kept moving coldly and calculating, their boss shouting orders and calling shots in a very specific way.

Finally, the Businesswoman's crew were going all in with the offense, their leader wielding a giant club like it was nothing.

The two of them didn't say anything or even move, just watched what was happening. Until Alex broke the silence.

"I'm going to guess that we have either missed a Divinity Statue, our way was shorter or they doubled back to gain more power. None of these options are a good thing for us. This said, they are dealing with the Boss, so. Small mercies."

"Maybe, but where'd she get the club? I mean I figured she'd be going all out with her fists but… shit, is that a Fetish down there? Those were the really souped up marionette demons if I remember correctly."

"I honestly don't know, but that's… I wonder what it's called…"

The creature looked like a fetish, if a fetish had a blue overalls and a dual wielded very big flaming blades, along with cackling and shooting balls of fire every now and then.

Boiler Poppet: The Infernal Janitor​

Both of them blinked their eyes.

"Did I imagine the… the superimposition of that, like, a photoshoot?" Alex rubbed at his eyes, his voice still low enough that there was no possibility for anyone to hear him.

"Nope, I just saw that too. Boiler Poppet… I'd have named it something else, I don't know, like Infernus: Demonic Purifier… I'm grasping at straws here but, well at least we'll know what we're fighting." Sol said, forcing humor into his voice.

Alex pointed down, towards the stage. "Well, we're not going to fight it."

Sol turned right in time to see the female leader slam her club down on the head of the Boss Monster, completely destroying it. She landed on the stage - which was, against any kind of sense, still perfectly intact, even if it was covered with shards of wood - while the remains of the monsters fell around her, vanishing on the way down, surrounding her with glimmers of red, before a ridiculous amount of Red Orbs exploded from behind her and zipped around the place, each person gaining a different amount.

"They have managed to kill a boss. That's… terrifying." Alex blinked, before gulping and taking a quiet step back. Better not be seen.

Sol did likewise before stating quietly, "Businessman and Sports Max, may be able to keep their groupies together, but this… Karen? If anyone here terrifies me, it's her."

*******************

Cassandra Stevens, or Andi as she was known to her friends, roared in triumph as the Boiler Poppet fell. With a majority of those orbs going to her, she could practically taste the power on offer.

In a very deliberate fashion, she began to turn on her heel, lifting the obscenely large stone club she pilfered from a statue earlier as a show of dominance. Her peons cheered for her, as they should have. The idiot kids were too, but not with any real heart to it.

Fine, she thought. They'd either die or fall in line. It didn't really matter in the long run. Then her eyes caught those of her 'rival.' Joseph Terence Goode or Terry as she knew him. He was as deceitful as a snake and while his little clique was glaring at her, he nodded ever so slightly. She thumbed her nose in response, a well made show of insult done up on the spot.

'They' were going to win this little horror show and if anyone said otherwise, well she'd simply introduce them to her new friend. Briefly, however, her eyes caught movement in an upper level of the chamber, two figures specifically. At first she thought they were more demons, but she recognized one of them. It was the man with the glasses and the other one… What was his name again? It didn't matter. It was a dog eat dog world here and only the strongest pack would survive.

************************

Joseph caught Andi's line of sight and saw the last glimpses of the two figures departing.

"So they're still alive… fine. Unless they're lucky, they'll never match up to us." He thought to himself.

He had to admit, Andi's plan was on the money. It was easy enough to get people to follow if your voice was loud enough. He just wished, and he knew Andi did too, that they had gotten the others before the resident football, soccer, or whatever sports star opened his dumb mouth. But there was no use crying over lost opportunities. It may actually benefit them in the long run.

"Mr. Goode, she…" One his people began to say before he cut them off.

"Killed that demon before we could, and what should that tell you?" He asked sharply.

"That… that…uh"

"That we lost a valuable opportunity, and next time we speed it the fuck up. Now come on, lick your wounds and do whatever you do best, those orbs won't form themselves."

*************************
Karl was not having a good day but he was trying. After seeing that business woman lift that club with such ease, he knew damn well that Steve would have been grinding his teeth in envy, if he was still alive that is.

For a moment his eyes moved to charred remains of what had once been his most trusted second on the team. He clenched his reflexively, enough where his nails began to draw blood. He never noticed the two onlookers, instead gathering his group into a huddle to discuss what they'd do next.

**************************

As Sol and Alex back tracked, they noticed that a new path had opened. What was once a solid wall, had partially collapsed to reveal a series of stately hotel rooms leading further into the structure.

"I guess her strike must have caused more damage than we realized." Sol said with a shrug, while Alex peered inside.

"I'm just hoping that it won't bring us in contact with them. I'm pretty sure that neither of us would be able to defeat them right now."
Alex then started walking forward, only peering in some rooms cursorily. A glance here and there, until he stopped around the middle of the hallway.

"Jackpot!" His smile could have cut his face in two, so wide it was. And with good reasons.

In the room on his left there was what looked like a big bush, but without leaves or fruits. No, it had red, bulbous growth on it, intersped with thin black branches with thorns. It sprouted straight from the concrete floor, without rhyme or reason.

"We got a Red Orb deposit. You take it, I'm gonna explore some more, see if there's anything interesting around here. I'll stay in shouting distance, don't worry." Alex reassured Sol, before leaving the room.

He started to move down the hallway, carefully and without moving too far away. During his walk, he discovered something… strange.

Each room had a bed, a closet, a desk, an attached bathroom and nothing else. It almost felt like a single room for a dormitory. With a theater stage attached to the same building.

Well, they were in Hell. Logic wasn't really something that held any kind of power over here. But that wasn't the important discovery that he had made. No, the most important thing was another one.

"The water works! And it's warm!" Alex's voice came from one room, only two doors down from where he had left Sol.

As Sol began to smash the red orb deposit with greater speed and ferocity, more and more red orbs began to pour out from the formation. Eventually, the deposit shattered, shards of red scattering to the floor.

As the shards lost their luster Sol began to think to himself, "The axe must have bit through a weak enough point."

It was then when he heard Alex's voice talking about water. Something hopeful bloomed in his chest and Sol quickly grabbed the med kit and went into one of the rooms. Finding the bathroom, he quickly turned the faucet on, feeling cool water run across his hands. He drank greedily, savoring the cooling water and realizing how much he needed it.

The mirror caught his attention, or more importantly, the blood soaked bandage reflected in it. With a grimace, Sol searched around, and grabbed a towel before placing it opposite the medical kit. Turning the hot water on, Sol slowly unwrapped the bandage, wincing ever so slightly at the act. Looking at the cut, he thought it wasn't as bad looking as it could have been, but he still had to clean it out properly.

"Ah!" Sol exclaimed as the hot water burned at the cut. With greater ease he wiped the blood from his brow, and when dry enough, he redressed it. The mirror however wasn't done with him yet. He noticed something else in the reflection. There was a window overlooking a… city?

"That can't be right." Sol said as he approached the window. Looking out he spied a large city that looked like it fought and lost a fight against a natural disaster. His hands found the latch and in an unconscious attempt, he tried to open the window. It wouldn't budge, and as Sol was seriously considering breaking it open, a large dark shape scuttled in front of it.

Sol backpedaled immediately and had to remind himself that despite the city scape in the window, he and Alex were still in hell.

"Everything's ok?" Alex asked, coming inside from the door, eyes alert. "I heard you yelp. Also, how's the wound?"

"Wound's okay… still hurts… but uh, Spider demon thing, scuttled down the window." Sol said between breaths. "Also tried to get the window open but the latch wouldn't open. You?"

"Found the shower. And the linen closet. Also, here, catch." And he threw a bottle of something at him. It was plastic, dusty and still sealed. It was shampoo.

"I also have body wash, loofah, hair conditioner, towels, and other assorted toiletries. All of them are for girls, but they are closed and - I checked - normal. This place kinda reminds me of a college dorm or something like that. Anyway, You take a shower, I'll stand guard. Then we switch."

Alex's expression turned into a grimace when he touched his hair. "I really need one. Also, food. As soon as possible."

"Nah man, I'm good. That spider thing…" Sol shudders, "I… I don't do spiders and I'd rather just be gone than stay here any longer than we need to."

"I hate bugs, so I understand perfectly." Alex assured Sol, before pointing at the bathroom. "However, we don't know when we are going to get another chance like this, we are sweaty, tired, dirty and we stink. The bathroom's window is too small for a demon to enter easily and, for the weaker ones, breaking the wall is gonna take enough time to let you prepare. Keep your weapon handy, but take a shower. Take the chance to recover for a moment. Trust me, it's gonna be necessary." His eyes were downcast. "Any moment we can get for ourselves is gonna be vital for our mental well being."

"I'm just going to wash my face again, and then find bottles, or other containers instead. Water is more important now, anyway." Sol states before looking for any container he could use.

Occasionally he could be heard muttering the phrase "Fill up the bathtubs with the stoppers down for more water collection, don't leave the water on unless you want to end up like the wet bandits…"

"If you insist. I'm going to take a shower, though. I feel disgusting." Alex twisted his nose, before moving towards the door of the bathroom. "Wash your face, then call me. I'll see if there are any containers around."

"Yeah, will do." Sol said as he began to search the rooms.

"No way in hell I'm taking a shower in a hotel room with giant spiders. That's some eight legged freaks horror right there. I remember what nearly happened to Johanssen in that movie." He shudders from the mental image and begins to turn over various rooms. In each room, Sol stopped every bathtub he could find and turned the water on. While waiting for the water to fill, he looked around, finding several empty flower vases. Washing them out with hot water, he began to fill them as much as he could. Looking at the containers, Sol took a headcount.

"That's five large vases and two smaller vases. That's not great but not bad either… and if we can still get to this area then that means additional water re-supply." He spied the window and carefully looked through it. Seeing nothing, he tried the latch again. Nothing, no matter how much he tried to move the latches, the window refused to open.

"Looks like we have to find the front door." Sol finished before bringing the water vases into the hallway.

"Uh, quick question…" Alex's head popped from a room, his hair already wet. "How are we going to bring the water with us?"

Without waiting for an answer, he returned into the room. Now, people could say that he was being incredibly stupid in taking a shower without anyone checking on him. And they would be right.

But he wasn't completely stupid: he had pushed a small dresser in front of the bathroom door, had checked every corner and, only then, had started the shower. Warm water cascaded on him and he started his routine.

Shampoo, wash away. Conditioner. Body wash. Wash away everything, then dry. Sadly, there wasn't a hair dryer anyway, so he just tied his hair in a bun after toweling them extensively, and walked out.

All in all, fifteen minutes.

During those fifteen minutes, Sol was lightly bouncing his head off the hallway wall.

"That. Was. A. Stupid. Waste. Of. Time." He stopped before stepping back.

"How the hell does Dante and Co. do all these crazy ass adventures and not take care of basic food and hydration requirements?" He asked himself.

"Maybe it's that demon blood? No, no Lady is fully human so… Maybe blue orbs and physical enhancement reduce physical needs while keeping the body optimized? If we get out of this, I'm going to try to have a good long conversation with Nico and ask how any of this works. Pay for the information in… in demon limbs or something."

He looked back at the jugs, "They're ceramic or porcelain vases, which means they're ultimately fragile, which in turns means that it's damn near impossible for us to take them with us for any long period of time… maybe the food package item at the shop has something? Watch it'll be an infinite canteen or just a canteen that can be refilled whenever some suitable source of water is found. Ah… who knows."

Finally, Alex rejoined him, still a little damp, but clean. Which was the important part.

"You are going to burn out. Try to not pull a Vergil on me, please. This said, the offer to shower is still open." He grinned at him to show that he wasn't really serious, before looking at the vases.

"Again, how are we going to bring them with us? They don't really have a stopper and we don't have a way to safely transport them."

"You're right…" Sol said before pausing. He was silent for a moment before he continued. "Funnily enough though, I'm not really feeling tired… In any other situation, I'd just have liked to pass out and hope this was all some sort of bad dream. But I'm not feeling the need to." Sol stressed. He became quiet for a few moments before continuing.

"I'm not going to pull a Vergil, you don't have to worry about that. But the others… they already are if that little display was any indication. Those business people, they have that damn mindset…" He rubbed his face before clearly trying to change subjects.

"Maybe we could carry one or two of the jugs and leave before entrances. Like guideposts. That way if we find a statue we can at least get some water before pushing forward."

Alex looked at him, before looking at the jugs. They were previous flower vases, so they were big enough, without handles and without a way to comfortably carry them.

"I have a sudden premonition that they will shatter with the first demon attack we met, but sure. It works." He then shrugged and put his staff on his back, using the belt to keep it there. Then, he grabbed one, before turning towards his companion. "Now, which way? I've seen a stairway at the other end of the hallway. One goes down and one goes up."

He turned again, towards the window. "Judging by what it can be seen, we are somewhere around the… second, third floor. So, it's either the roof or the ground floor."

"I'd say ground floor, if only because I still couldn't get those windows open and the idea seems to be we're heading further down this, I almost want to call it a hellish dreamscape." Sol says while grabbing a jug.

"Considering we are in Hell…" Alex let his words trail out, before starting to walk towards the stairs.

"You know another thing I noticed? When the demons appear… The barriers don't."

"Yeah, you're right. Usually we'd have seen that wall of faces and…" Sol paused before a suspicion filled look flashed across his face.

"Except the only place we ever saw a barrier was at the antechamber with the four entrances. If those entrances did and would lead to Boiler Poppet, then that means they're like big boss fight warning signs."

As Sol began to make his way down the stairs he spoke again. "Whoever is doing this is banking on the others not knowing and not asking about those barriers, I can almost guarantee it."

Mid step, he stumbles before continuing "If we're in the Qliphoth, why are we seeing cityscapes, and more importantly why are we heading up it? We're being played, we are being played."

"The Qliphoth doesn't answer the rules of space and time, remember? It grew from Hell into the World of Humans, which is usually impossible." Even as he was saying this, Alex frowned and looked down the stairs. Empty.

No monsters.

"You know what our problem is? We don't know how much of the game was in there for the sake of the… Well, gameplay and game mechanics. And how much is because it happens when things are real."

After saying this, he stopped at the first floor and looked out of the window in front of the stairs. The place looked more and more like a school plus dormitory. "We don't have enough information to make an accurate deduction, we can only infer information from what little we have. And, as everyone can tell you, trying to solve a problem with only half the information is an excellent way to make a mistake."

"So then don't solve it and walk past everything? Wait no, that's what the others are doing. Ha… be kinda interesting if that voice from the beginning spoke again, like a saccharine pep talk or something. Guess we have to solve it to survive." Sol responded before opening a large set of doors.

Beyond them, was what looked like a large hotel lobby, brightly lit, well furnished, and generally opulent. Sol looked back at Alex.

"These places aren't supposed to be together. It's like they're blending almost. Maybe… are these places memories?"

"How could we find out?" Alex pointed out, reasonably, before putting down the vase on the outside of the hall. "Also, I never said that we should just go on and not care about what is happening. I'm saying that we don't have enough information, at the moment, to try and hazard a guess about what's happening."

He only peered inside the hall without entering.

"However, this place looks a lot like a boss fight in waiting. Put down the vase and enter carefully?" He asked, grabbing the staff from his back and pointing at the large room.

"Yeah." Sol responded before putting the vase down and readying his weapons. The axe in his right hand, gun in his left.

He began to walk down one of the staircase paths leading from the door. Nothing so far, but he did spot at least three doors. One on either side of the lobby and a much larger door leading to the entrance. He tried the door he was closest too, locked.

"Seems like to me that maybe going forward is the way to go?" Sol asked with a shrug. Alex nodded, before looking at the other door. It was slightly ajar.

"I spy, with my little eye, something different. Do you think it's a secret thing or is it the boss room?" The left door that Sol had tried was closed. The main door was also closed, but the right door looked slightly opened.

"Seems too easy. Almost like it's a trap?"

*Groan…*

There was a groaning noise from, like metal having too much weight on it. Looking up, the two saw nothing. A voice began to emanate from that location and the name super imposed itself in their eyes.

"What is this? Two little humans wandering where they should not be, and stealing? Such activities deserve punishment." It spoke, voice creaking like old wood.

MADAM ARANEA: DEVILISH MATRON​

From an obscured spot by the front entrance a bizarre caricature of a woman dressed in a dark grey and black high collared dress with a doll motif. It regarded the two briefly before continuing forward.

"Oh fuck." Sol breathed out, face steadily taking on a paler shade.

"Oh fuck." Alex nodded, even if it wasn't a question. He had gone a few shades too pale, too.

She looked proper and prim, dressed like a Victorian matron, all straight laced with a grey shirt tucked into a long black skirt going down to the floor. She was also made of wood - or, at least, had skin that looked like wood - and an expression that could curdle milk just by being near it.

"Entering without invitation, wandering around the girls dorm rooms, stealing supplies that do not belong to you, dirtying the floors… I would go on, but I want to hear what you have to say for yourselves, naughty boys that you are."

Sol briefly shot Alex a look. The kinda look that says 'I'm about to do something REALLY stupid, so get ready.'

Sol cleared his throat, "Well, uh, before we go any further, I'd think it best to introduce a third party by the name of BERETTA!" Sol finished with a shout before firing indiscriminately in Madam Aranea's general direction.

"Get into a better position!" Sol shouted at Alex as he kept firing.

"Wastrel! Prepare to pay with your life!" The demon responded.

Alex didn't answer, between legging it on the other side of the room, a shining sphere already charging on top of his staff, leaving Sol to tank the close combat. It was a division of roles that had worked well for them before.

Before.

"Where do you think you are going?" Her voice grated at his ears, before a ball of webbing exploded in front of him.

"Fuck fuck fuck…." Almost by instinct, he released the charged shot towards the webbing, blowing it up to smithereens and avoiding being entangled. Right after that, he pivoted on his foot, staff already extended, and shot a series of bullets at the demon, all of them impacting better than the bullets that Sol had tried to extend. Mostly because magic projectiles were easier to aim.

Sol came up from behind and tried to hook what he thought was a leg by cutting through the dress's skirt. The axe cut through the cloth, hitting nothing, but hooking around something. Any of the other walking demons that the two had fought previously would have been tripped by this maneuver. However, Madam Aranea merely pitched forward, before that something flared out, striking Sol in the midsection and sending him tumbling back.

"Look what you have done to my skirt." Hissed the demon. "Death may be too good for…" She was cut off by a hail of bullets, striking with a better degree of accuracy.

"Don't really care, you evil clone of Mary Poppins." Sol spoke as he began to get up.

"Don't insult Mary Poppins. She doesn't hold a candle to her." Alex muttered, another charged bullet ready to be shot.

Before he could, however, Madam Aranea turned far faster than what her starched skirt should have allowed her and gestured towards Sol. A series of threads, the glinting that the lights of the hall revealed the only hint at their presence, following her hands. And cutting into the stone around her.

It was a fluke, really, that the charged bullet exploded against her back before she could cut Sol into itty bitty pieces.

Sol moved out the way "Were those webs!? Aw, fuck!" He shouted as closed the distance, aiming this time at her waist, instead of her legs. The axe bit in, and while not as deeply as it had on the rank and file, enough where the demoness let out a painful roar before grabbing Sol by the scruff of his neck and throwing him across the room.

"Gahh!" Sol gasped out as he hit the wall, but still managed to stagger to his feet. Dazed he began to move behind some form of cover.

In the meantime, Alex was doing his very best to get killed. It looked a lot like trying to shoot as many bullets as he could shoot at the demon in front of him, his staff moving in a spiraling motion that never seemed to end.

The bullets hit, for the most part, but the damage was really minimal against the demon. Madam Aranea started advancing towards him, her demeanor stately and clearly unconcerned about the bullets.

"Cease your foolish attempt to stop me from killing you. Show at least a fraction of the dignity that one of my girls would have."

Alex stopped. Looked up at her, and then smirked.

"Ok!" And he shot a single bullet upwards. The chain that held the chandelier aloft snapped and the construction of glass and metal fell down. Right on the demon. Right after that, he threw himself to the side, scrabbling for cover behind the first thing he could find.

Sol looked at the broken remains of the chandelier before calling out to Alex "Sorry for the lack of help, don't really know if this could be considered destruction of private or public property."

Sol's attempt at a laugh was short lived, as the bulk that was Madam Aranea began to shift and move under the broken chandelier. As she stood up, shards of metal and glass jutting out of her at odd angles, the veneer of proper society was absent, only a sneer remained. It was one that belied greater depths of anger. She attempted to move, to remove herself from the pile, but the chandelier must have caught and trapped her skirt, because as she did so, it tore away.

Sol realized why his first strike hooked around something instead of biting into it. Four doll-like legs, similar to a spider, maneuvered themselves out from under the torn skirt.

"The web attacks, the spider demon I saw earlier… oh fuck me running."

She looked down and then back up at the two. "Impertinent humans, die!" And she jumped.

Now, all that goes up - as long as it's still trapped in Earth's gravity - must come down. This is true for humans.

For demons, not so much. As Madam Aranea reached the ceiling and stood there almost as if she was standing on a normal floor, her four sharp legs, reminiscent of spider ones, supported her without a problem.

"Any ideas?" Alex asked Sol, charging another bullet on the top of his staff, ready to… try and do something. He wasn't even sure.

"Break… shoot at her leg joints! Demons might be bullshit but I doubt they can maintain a strong grip on walls without at least three points of contact." Sol said before he took and fired at one of Madam Aranea's front legs. He hadn't been counting rounds before but he figured he didn't have to and kept pulling the trigger.

Some of the bullets struck true, others missed and hit the wall behind it. However, only a few kept hitting. As soon as four or five bullets had managed to hit her legs, she jumped away from her position, a blur of movement so fast that neither of them could keep track of her.

Until she landed, in front of Alex. Again, it was a stroke of luck that saved him, as the charged bullet he was keeping got released and exploded right in front of him. And on her.

This time, the blow pushed her away from him, black scorch marks on her body showing where she had been hit.

"I'm getting tired of this!" Aranea shouted before the sound of bullets pinging off wood and metal sounded again. Sol had resumed firing, aiming at the spot he had been targeting. Several more rounds hit before she jumped back and moved across the wall.

Without stopping, she started rapidly spewing webs and white, silk-thin metallic-looking strands of web started to cover the place at around chest height.

"Come here!" Alex managed to shout at Sol, before a thread shot directly at him. Without thought put into it, he interposed the staff between him and the attack.

The top of the staff got cut off without resistance.

"Fuck me." Alex groaned, before dropping on the ground and rolling away from another volley of threads. The weapon was still usable… for the next five minutes. After that, it would either explode or just die down.

Sol wanted to reach Alex while laying as much fire on Madam Aranea as he could but that web blast killed that plan. He looked at the gun in his hand for a moment and tossed it over, shouting "Alex! Take it!"

Sol drew his knife in his off hand and prepared to charge the demon.

"No, don't…!" Alex dropped the staff and grabbed the gun somewhat awkwardly, before pointing the shooting end towards the demon.

"I'm no good with a gun, why did you even…. Argh!" Energy started to collect in front of the muzzle, before it shot forward, the charged bullet working with the weapon.

The charged shot struck the demon in one of her legs, blasting it apart. She pitched forward, howling in pain as her center of gravity was gone. Sol was running, and brought his axe down on the leg he'd been firing at. Swinging several times, the axe cut through the appendage before he had to run as she prepared another web blast.

He just barely dodged it, and the blast sheared through the stone wall behind him.

"You horrible children! I will make stew with your meat, bread with your bones, and pickle your eyes!" The shrill voice of the demon grated on their ears, before she started trying to move once more, her legs managing to keep her vaguely upright. Vaguely.

She was swaying like a drunk, before she shot her hands upwards. Threads latched onto the ceiling and raised her in the air, before her legs started to… move.

One shot forward, extending like a spear, towards Sol. The other, towards Alex.

Alex raised his hand, suddenly remembering something, and a translucent barrier appeared in front of him, the spear hitting it and shattering it, but not killing the guy. Which was the important part, really.

Sol on the other hand, jumped and then initiated Air Hike, dodging the spear and rolling as he hit the ground. As he came up, he threw his knife as hard as he could at the demoness. The knife struck the demoness' head pommel side, causing her to agonizingly twist herself to face his direction.

"Yep, I think I'll be sticking with guns from here on out," Sol said before dodging another spear.

"Good idea!" Alex charged another shot, although this one went wide as the demon swayed on the threads holding her aloft, before throwing the gun towards Sol. "Here, take it back!"

Right after that, he had to raise another barrier to stop the leg from impaling him from side to side.

Sol grabbed the handgun, raised it, and fired. Madam Aranea attempted to dodge, only being able to shift her head, but it wasn't fast enough. Several of the bullets struck one of her eyes, disorientating her. Flailing, the demoness began to throw blasts of web wildly, forcing Sol to retreat.

"Finish her!" Sol shouted.

"Oh, damn you, you stupid demon." Alex muttered, the recovered staff in his hands starting to smoke and spark. Energy flowed from his hands and body into the wood, the symbols on the side lighting up and shedding purple light on his hands.

Then, after a few moments, he changed position, grabbing the remains of the staff like a spear, the start of a bullet appearing at the tip.

"Eat this." And he threw the staff.

Maybe it was the magic that he had poured into it, maybe it was luck, maybe it was because, in her violent thrashing, Madam Aranea moved. It didn't matter, in the end, as the broken staff hit the center mass of the demon.

Then, it exploded.

And the demon with it.

The light and sound from the explosion were deafening, however the effect soon. Where the demon once stood, lay a pile of broken limbs, melted stone, the burning remains of cloth and wood, and an absolute mass of red orbs.

"The only good spider is an obliterated spider," Sol said, grinning before breathing, hissing, and clutching his side. "I think she bruised a rib or two… god I hope it's just bruising." He finished, before the front doors opened on their own.

"That uh… that wasn't me." He continued, shakily.

Behind them there was a short hallway. At the end, a Divinity Statue, and only that.

"Oh, look, a Divinity Statue. Maybe we should use it. I mean we got…" Alex started saying, before stopping and looking like he had just been slapped with a fish. Eyes wide and unseeing, mouth hanging open, body slack, air going out of his mouth, but with no sound.

"Ten… Ten thousand Red Orbs."

"Each!?" Sol responded before checking. "Holy Shit, yeah!" He shouted, before continuing, "Well no time like the present am I right?"

"Definitely. Physical Upgrade, here I come!" Alex shouted, getting up and power walking - as he was a bit sore from being thrown backward from the attack before - towards the Divinity Statue.

However, when he reached it, he stopped cold for the second time in two minutes.

"Hey, maybe I'm… I don't know, concussed or hallucinating or trapped into a coma dream, but… Isn't that a glowing red circle on the ground that is emitting red mist and also having the name 'Gate of Hell' on the edge? Granted, the last thing is in Enochian, so you probably can't read it, but…" He stopped, clearly not computing, before turning towards Sol with a lost expression.

"Are we… Is this a crossover? Are we in Bayonetta? What is happening?"

"Man, I don't know, but if this is and that is the portal to what you say it is, then that probably means yes… Wasn't it implied that Eva was an Umbran? I mean look, if it is, then that may mean better weapons. My axe wasn't doing all that good against the spider back there and you need a replacement staff so… Why not?" Sol responded.

"You are absolutely right." Alex nodded, before running back and grabbing as much of the demon's corpse as he could.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I meant to post this yesterday evening, but co-worker wanted to hand out last night and I didn't get back in until almost 11-12, and I was touch too tired to do final proofreading. On the upside, doing it now allowed me to catch some tense issues with some of Sol's dialogue. So, that's always a plus. Next chapter is going to be released either on this coming Tuesday or Wednesday.

 

[Atma]

The portal flashed red and the two of them found themselves in a bar. A high-class bar, really. There was a suffused, soft blue light, cushioned couches in red velvet, the architecture was extremely gothic, but also very tasteful and it was utterly empty.

"Oh? New blood? Welcome to the Gates of Hell." The low, rasping voice came from a hulking man that fit the definition of tall, dark and handsome. Also dangerous as Hell itself.

Rodin.

Alex shivered, his eyes raking his figure up and down without caring if he was seen behind the armful of materials that he had with him.

"Damn, I want myself a man like that." His whisper was low enough that only Sol should have been able to hear it, but Rodin chuckled all the same.

"Hey, whatever floats your boat, life is too short for bad wine." Sol whispered back, trying to get some brevity to counter the growing mass of nervousness inside him.

"Fucking shit, this is actually happening. Ohhhhh okay, yeah fallen angel who is probably the only being that can consistently be a threat to Bayonetta. Just breathe man, and you can get through this." Sol thought in a slight panic.

"Thanks uh… thanks for having us. You wouldn't be open for business now, would you? I'm not just talking about a drink either. My friend and I are looking to possibly buy some hardware." Sol asked, stumbling over his words.

Rodin looked at the two guys, before shaking his head mournfully. "These hunters get younger and younger each year. Sure kid, I'm open for business. I see you already have some basic things on hand?" He nodded his head towards the armful that Alex was bringing along. The long-haired guy nodded.

"Uh, yeah. It's a demon that attacked us, some sort of puppet in the shape of a woman. Had web attacks and metallic threads and… sorry, I'm rambling. Adrenaline crash, I guess." Alex almost bit his tongue, before taking a few steps forward. And stopping.

"Do I… just drop it here or…" Rodin shrugged and pointed at the far left of the counter.

"There's fine. I'm guessing you want a weapon from that?" His red eyes were peeking from above his glasses, making both guys gulp.

"Yes sir. Whatever you think it would be best for the materials, really. I don't know how to use anything beyond flailing around, so… I'm in your hands." Alex shrugged, gently putting down the loot: cloth, limbs, threads, anything that he could safely transport.

"No need to call me sir. I'll see what I can do… And if you trust me with the weapon, I'm even going to offer you a first time discount. For both you and your friend there." Rodin gestured with his hand towards Sol.

"Well to be honest, I'm looking for something that packs a little more punch than this axe. It's been serving me pretty well so far, but just didn't do it enough on the former owner of all those limbs." Sol pauses before continuing. "Whatever you do with those materials, give to him." Sol said, pointing at Alex before continuing.

"His staff was partially damaged by the demon we just killed, and well it kinda sort of blew up along with the demon. So, anything you have premade, I'd be more than willing to look at."

"You're a loyal one, uh?" Rodin asked, not really waiting for an answer. He just scooped up the materials and nodded. "Feel free to browse my wares. This will take me a few."

A red portal appeared behind him and he vanished into it. Silence fell onto the bar.

Alex cleared his throat. "So…." He started, only to stop and cough again.

Again, silence.

"That… happened, uh?" Again, he tried, without managing to say much more.

"Yes, yes it did… I can't believe I'm saying this, but outside of you, the only other being I'm willing to put my trust in is a fallen angel… Well, let's check his wares." Sol stated before looking at the wall of weapons that suddenly manifested. Most of them, Sol's eyes glazed over, thinking to look at them again later on. And then Sol went still, looking at one weapon in particular. It was… well a sword, a massive double-edged thing with a Damascus pattern and shovel head tip. Sol took a step back and pointed at the weapon.

"That's… that's Vendetta… how the hell did Rodin get Vendetta!?"

Sol looked back at some of the weapons he glossed over before. "Basic Devil arms, Angel Arms…Longinus? I don't recognize that one, but I thought that sword was only on Dumary Island. Oh I gotta think about this one, man. I have got to think about this one."

"Uh… I can't remember what Vendetta is? Something from one of the earlier DMC?" Alex raised his hand like he was in school, trying to see what Sol was seeing.

"One of the two swords Dante could find in DMC2, something about being made from a fragment of the grim reaper's scythe. I have no doubt in my mind that I'll need at least some straight up physical enhancement to even lift that thing. What else does he have here?" Sol asked, more to himself than to anyone else.

"Looks like he has… a lot. Is that an AK-47?" Alex pointed at the guns behind the counter, careful of not touching anything.

*****************************************************

It took Rodin an hour or so, but he was soon back with a wrapped bundle of black cloth.

"It has been a while since I worked on something so basic. But it's nice to return to basics every now and then. You look like the type to like this kind of thing, so here. For Five Thousand, it's yours."

The black bundle of cloth fell apart, to reveal…

An umbrella.

Alex looked at it for a moment, before looking up at Rodin, puzzled. "I'm assuming it's full of tricks?" His question was mostly rhetorical, thanks to the fact that he knew some from his games. Still, an explanation would be welcomed.

"Yeah. Can be used to channel magic, of course. The cloth is reinforced and can be used as a barrier. Finally, open it." At his gesture, Alex took the umbrella and opened it, only to see it had a smooth wooden handle.

"If you grab the end of the handle and twist counterclockwise…" A click echoed in the air, before a slim, almost delicate, sword slid off the sheat.

"Will never dull or chip. So, kid, you want it?" He was smirking at the duo.

A moment later, the weapon in Alex's hands thrummed with power, and something that felt a lot like someone brushing against his conscience. He gasped. "This is… a Devil Arm? A genuine one?" Eyes wide behind his glasses, he turned towards the fallen angel, not really believing it. Rodin just nodded, smirking.

Alex couldn't pay fast enough.

While he was twirling the umbrella in his hands, he decided it was worth a shot. "Just a question: does it have a name?"

The question was more than just what it looked like: where they were in, having a name meant… a lot.

"Yeah. Calcabrina." Rodin smiled at Alex, who blinked and looked at the weapon - Calcabrina - with awe…

"You know, I joked earlier about Madam Aranea being an evil clone of Mary Poppins, and I know, sacred name, but still, that's one hell of a weapon." Sol said while clapping Alex on the shoulder.

He then looked to Rodin. "Okay, three, no four questions sir. Can you do anything with this axe?" Sol began while laying the axe on the bar. "Can the statue of time and space be bribed, because we've been seeing a cheaper alternative to physical enhancements with a prefix of "L" next to it."

Sol lowered two of his finger's before continuing. "How much physical enhancement do I need to wield that," he said pointing to Vendetta "and how did you get Vendetta? I heard a few legends about the blade, but I thought it was on Dumary island."

"The Watcher of Time cannot be bribed. He does what he does because he wants to do it. There's no power anywhere near here that can alter his will." Rodin answered, suddenly serious, before calming down after a moment.

"The axe is a mundane axe, simply enchanted. I can do something with it, but it's not going to do much to it. The basic materials are just… meh." He shrugged, before continuing. "Vendetta got into my arms when a fat Italian man sold it to me to pay for the debt of another demon hunter. As for wielding it… At a basic level, you would need to be a bit stronger than what you are now."

After concluding, he took the sword down from its position. "Go on, try to lift it."

"Alright." Sol said before moving over to the wall. He gripped the handle of the large weapon and tried to lift it off the rack. The blade did lift somewhat, but Sol wound up dropping it back down and stumbling backward. Panting heavily, Sol stated, "Damn! you weren't kidding when you said I needed to get stronger… I think I'll go with something else… something below or at 5,000 Red Orbs."

"You mentioned Dumary Island earlier, didn't ya? Take a look at the basic arms. One might catch your eye." Rodin said with an amused chuckle.

Sol did so and noticed a series of simple weapons. He was familiar with Bloody Mari dagger, but the other three. "Scythe from the hell pride right? Not really my style."

There was an axe that looked like it had a misshapen wooden grip. "Scarecrow axe?" To which Rodin nodded.

"You've got good eyes."

"Thanks." Sol, responded before looking at the final one. It was a one handed sword, bloodstains were evident on it and before Sol could say anything, Rodin spoke.

"It's a finis sword. Rank and file demons made from prisoners use them alot. Heh, I had a bunch sold to me a few years ago by an old client. Some corporate bigwig raised a whole mess of 'em and the previous owner of the sword you tried to lift, destroyed most of them."

"How much?" Sol asked.

"1,000 Red Orbs." Rodin responded with a smile.

Sol took the blade off the rack and laid it on the table "And bought."

Alex bowed at Rodin, his new Devil Arm on his shoulder. "Thank you. I don't know how it would have gone without this." He was smiling.

Rodin nodded, before blinking. "Ah, right. Wait a mo'." Uncaring of how the two had reacted, he dug under the counter for a moment, before taking out a box. From the inside, he recovered two leather bands.

"Here. A portable inventory. You can keep your weapons inside when you aren't using them, which will come handy for later, if you survive. Consider it on the house."

So, he had just given them what amounted to a spatial bubble with free access as a freebie. One couldn't say that Rodin didn't know how to get repeated clients.

"You, sir, have just ensured yourself repeat customers, and I promise you, I'll come back to buy that sword… and maybe a drink or two." Sol said with a grin.

As the two left and reality returned to the hallway, Sol looked to Alex and stated "You use the statue first. I want to get a good idea of what swinging this sword is like. I want to know the differences, you know?"

"Comprehensible. Using a sword is… wait a moment. You can buy techniques from the statue. Weapon ones, too. I wonder if I can get a discount for this beauty here." Alex grinned as he took out Calcabrina in a shower of sparks, twirling it around, before storing it away again.

During all of that, he was smiling like a loon. "Let's be honest: we hit the jackpot."

Sol smiled, responding with "Damn straight we have," before moving back into the lobby. Kicking aside some broken furniture, he unsheathed the finis sword and began to swing. It was weighty but it didn't feel too heavy. Experimentally he stepped forward and thrust the blade before an invisible enemy, when an idea hit.

"Alex brought up buying techniques… that genius, Haha! I do have a sword… might as well try for Stinger."

After that, Alex moved towards the statue and tapped it.

"Default screen as always." He scowled, before waving them away and turning towards the Watcher of Time. He bowed, deeply.

"Thank you for your guidance and protection." Without saying anything more, he went straight to the enhancement page and bought the Basic Enhancement (Physical), staying well away from those marked with a (L).

After that, he got out of the statue. And he felt something strange.

Mostly a sudden flash of pain, as his sight became distorted, at least until he removed his glasses. "Damn, I guess I don't need these anymore…" Storing the eye wear in his inventory, he stopped, noticing another detail.

"...Why are my clothes hanging like a tent?" He looked down and saw that, if the belt wasn't there, he would currently be naked from the waist down. Luckily for him, that only lasted a moment, as the clothes resized themselves to be his size once more.

"Whoa. I'm fit." He patted his stomach, flat for the first time in his life. Then, he checked himself over: no more fat, a little skinny, but clearly with lean muscles instead of just skin and bone. "...I kinda like it."

There was some commotion in the hallway ahead before Sol's head leaned into view. Shortly after he began to walk down the hallway, a sheepish look on his face. "I can see now why Dante may or may not have to pay massive amounts in property damage. We uh, really trashed the lobby. Anyway, looking way better than before man, I'm guessing you bought the good version of physical enhancement?"

Alex nodded, before taking a short jump and seeing how different it was from before. A lot.

"Best thing I bought, after Magic. Are you going to buy it, too?" He asked his friend, while moving away from the statue and taking his place as guard.

"Yeah, figured it'd help start evening the playing field, you know?" Sol stated before touching the statue.

Looking at its representation Sol selected Personal Enhancement. The menu opened and he made a concerted point to avoid the L enhancements. Selecting the more expensive version, he watched the counter of red orbs drop from 9000 to 4000 and felt… better, much better. But he could look at the differences later.

He swapped menus and took a second Blue Orb for 1500 Red Orbs, that better feeling only increased. He swapped the menu again to abilities and saw…

"Stinger is here… okay, this is good. We can work with this." He said before purchasing the option. Something seemed to click in his mind.

"1,000 red orbs left… anything else?" He asked himself before remembering something.

"Alex did ask if I bought armor before… Might as well check the price."

The armor option, under Care Package D, was for 600 red orbs. Sol bought the option out right. He felt his clothes shift and change before a visor partially obscured his sight.

"Ah! Oh! Haha, yeah should have seen that one coming. Alright, that leaves me with 400 left over. Til next time!" Sol said before reality swapped back into place.

There is a clanking noise as Sol reappears wearing what is effectively a simple set of fluted steel armor. "Looks like I'll be taking a lot more hits in the future." He said while lifting up the visor.

Alex snorted, Calcabrina on his shoulder and all of his teeth showing. "You look good. You also look a bit taller than before, you know? Someone didn't eat his greens growing up?" He ribbed playfully, pointing out that Sol seemed to have gained an inch of height.

Right after that, however, he calmed down.

"Nothing happened in the big room. And no one appeared, either. The palace is dead empty, emphasis on dead." He gestured with his hand towards the half-open door. "The closed door is still closed and won't open. That way seems to be the only way forward… Unless we want to try and break a window or something."

"I mean, I tried to get a window open the normal way. So why not? They shouldn't be too difficult to break. Sol said before walking into the lobby and looking around until his eyes caught an innocent looking window that overlooked the front courtyard.

"Okay, I'm going to try something new so let's see how this works." Sol said before readying his sword and… zooming forward. He flew through the window and tumbled out onto the courtyard. From the ground, he spoke.

"Okay, I think I underestimated the range and speed of Stinger."

Alex's head popped out from the window, a sardonic look on his face. "Ya think?"

After that, he calmly passed through the broken window without jumping and without touching any of the broken glass. The situation was already dangerous enough without the risk of a cut.

"So, where do you think we are?" He looked around, but he couldn't really see anything of note. It was a courtyard with a tall, metal gate on the other side of the door that led into the building. A few trees, a few bushes, nothing more. "This place looks… dead. Of people."

But no bloodstains anywhere, so there had been no fight. "Wonder where the others have gone…"

"Probably deeper down..or up? Well, further in." Sol said, sitting up. "I figure that's our route too. Now we just need to find the next entrance."

"Well, there's a gate right there. Maybe we can go through the streets, instead of the sewers? Metaphorically speaking, I mean." Alex took a few steps forward, before stopping to listen.

"Hey, can you hear that?"

"Hmmm, what is it?" Sol, note a caution ringing his voice.

"Nothing. There's no sound in the air. Zilch. No demon, no animal, no person. It's completely silent." Alex pointed, before he stood there, silent, to let him notice it as well. The silence in the air was so encompassing that it was making them hear the sound of their own blood in their ears.

"Then we take it nice and slow, keep our eyes sharp, and maybe find a sewer or subway? Something that will go downwards." Sol said before continuing. "Considering this may or may not be stitched together memories of a physical place, I guess animals and other noises wouldn't really exist here."

"Well, if that theory is true, wouldn't the place still have sounds? How many memories do you have that are completely without sound?" Alex pointed out, before finally reaching the gate and pushing it. Closed.

"And the gate's closed, obviously. We'll have to blast it open." Calcabrina was in his hands a moment later, before he took a few steps back. Then, a sphere of energy started collecting on the metal tip of the umbrella, growing bigger than he had ever managed before.

"Let's see if you can take this." Showing his teeth in a mockery of a smile, Alex shot the charged bullet at the gate. The subsequent explosion raised a cloud of dust that obscured in front of them and also echoed in the still air like a bomb.

"Whoops."

"No kidding." Sol said, trying to fan away the dust. "Looks like Calcabrina can pack one hell of a punch. How are you feeling? Any strain on your end?" Sol asked as the dust settled.

"Nah, not really. Devil Arms are really something else, uh?" Alex still smiled at thinking that he had a Devil Arm all of his own. "You know, the next boss we meet, you MUST get something done for yourself. Beyond Vendetta, I mean."

The dust settled and they could see what had happened: the gate had bent and twisted, the explosion not enough to break it apart, but just enough to almost destroy it. Alex took a step to the side, leaving space to Sol.

"Want to do the honors?"

"All right." Sol said, before getting into stance, pausing, moving back several paces, and letting loose another stinger. The thrust sent him forward enough to smash the gate fully open and continue for a few more feet. This time Sol did not stumble or fall, merely getting out of the pose and looking around.

"Okay you're definitely right about something other than Vendetta. I'm really starting like this sword. Maybe it'd be good material for something else down the line?"

Past the gate was a small road which led to a series of interconnected streets. They weren't in the best condition as signs of battle were evident between bullet holes, slash marks, and what appeared to be burn damage, possibly from an electrical or flame based source.

"Okay, it seems we're getting more and more into civilization than before. How long til the demons make their grand re-entrance?" Sol asked quietly.

"Well, if I had to hazard a guess…. Now." From a series of portals, several Scarecrows jumped out, their weapons raised and strangely gleaming under the light of the… sun? Well, it was a source of light and was up above them, so it was the sun.

"Joy, we have passed from the Marionettes to the Scarecrows." Alex deadpanned, before giving his back to Sol. "I'll guard your back, you guard mine."

"Right!" Sol said as he drew his sword and pistol. As one scarecrow lumbered into view, Sol prepared himself. The moment he felt it get into range, he loosed a Stinger. Running the demon through, he pulled the sword out and swung it down, the demonic blade cutting far deeper than the hand-axe would have. There was a spray black writhing mist as the demon deflated, upon which Sol turned and fired at the horde of scarecrows.

"Alright guys, look this way. That's it, pay no attention to the sorcerer with the magic cannon." Sol said, trying to draw their attention.

He definitely had their attention. Of those in front of him, anyway. The ones that approached from behind him, however, were met with a smiling Alex.

"Hello and welcome to my pop-up restaurant. Let me serve you the entree." Calcabrina was pointed at him, his smile showing all of his teeth from above the closed umbrella. "We're now serving: boom." A sphere of magic started charging on top of the tip and shot before the scarecrow could amble near enough, sending them backwards.

"Let me serve you the next dish!" A series of bullets started raining on the monsters, only to stop a moment later, as Alex had to stop to breathe. Devil Arms were awesome, but they used far more magic than what he was used to. Still, it only lasted a moment to recover and focus again.

Sol saw the magical chaos briefly as he stabbed another scarecrow. Dragging the blade out as quickly as possible, he performed an air hike and plunged the blade down, impaling another scarecrow, before being forced to dodge as a scarecrow blade came at him. The blade slid off the rim of his helmet, but the force forced him to roll. Sol managed to fire from his downed position, stunning the scarecrow briefly before it was destroyed in a hail of bullets and slashes.

"Oh yeah, this armor is definitely working." Sol said while getting up.

"Don't get overconfident!" Alex's voice spiked at the end of the word, as he had to juke to the side and open Calcabrina at the last moment, the blades of the two scarecrows sliding over the reinforced cloth.

Still, they didn't stop their assault, which made Alex grit his teeth and take a step back, buying himself a moment of reprieve, more than enough to slide the sword out of the sheath and start charging a bullet at the tip of the sword.

"Eat this!" With a flourish that even he couldn't explain where it had come from, he swiped the open umbrella to the side, making the Scarecrows lose their balance for a moment, and shot the exploding bullet at them, sending them flying backwards in a shower of scraps.

"And that ends that. Either we're getting better, these guys were easier than we thought, or both." Sol said as he began to collect his orbs. "Nice move with that magic shot, got a feeling that might be good to keep crowds at bay."

"It almost wiped me out, sadly." Alex lamented, panting heavily, before straightening up once again and starting to recover the orbs that belonged to him. "I'm going to take the Mystical Enhancement next. Also, is it me or did these Scarecrows drop more Red Orbs?"

Between the two, they had gained something like two thousand Red Orbs, although Sol had gained a bit more than half.

"I just got seven hundred Orbs. From a single encounter. It seems… I dunno, we were struggling to fight a single Marionette less than…" He stopped mid sentence and turned towards Sol.

"How much time has passed since we woke up here?"

Sol is silent for a few moments before speaking again. "Can't be minutes… hours maybe." there's a tone of worry in his voice as he continues, looking around while he does. "It can't be a day yet, can it? Ah, this… I wish we had real light to see, maybe that could give us an idea?" He asks before spotting a clock in a broken window display. Approaching it, Sol leans forward and then backpedals. The hands of the clock are moving in opposite directions. Not fast, but against the understanding of time.
"They… the clock hands, they're moving opposite to each other. What the hell is this place?" Sol asked Alex, horror evident in his tone.

Alex simply stopped in front of the broken window, looking at the clock. Then, without a single hint of his intentions, he slammed the tip of Calcabrina against the glass, shattering it completely and starting to enter from it.

"I don't know. But I'm sure that it's the work of a demon. A smart one, really. To summon people and give them power, only to let them roam free to fight other demons? Doesn't make any sense. So, there must be something more in it." The inside of the shop was… dark. Empty. Dusty.

It looked like it had been abandoned as soon as it had been completed. "Something's not right with this city. Beyond the demonic whatever is happening."

It's not that Alex wasn't feeling horror, fear, and panic at whatever was happening there. It's just that he was pretty good at hiding it.

"It's almost like a scene from a memory… we just, just have to keep moving." Sol states before walking completely into the store. There isn't much he finds, save for a few brochures of sights around 'Redgrave City, United Kingdom'.

"Huh, so we're in Britain then? Well what is here?" Sol asks aloud before flipping through the pamphlet. Reading through, Sol begins to speak. "So, we're currently in or at Pawn Avenue, and we left the Il Chiaro Mondo Hotel, at least I think we did. The front courtyard is similar but I think the damage that we caused may have made it difficult to see the finer details. Now, some of the pages are gone, but one thing that crops up is a place called Burrow Market." Sol turns the pamphlet over to show Alex. "Maybe worth a shot?"

"Considering I have no idea where to go otherwise, I'm trusting you. It's not like I have another idea, really. Before we go, however…" Alex unsheathed the sword from his weapon and slashed the register in half.

It failed to explode in a shower of Red Orbs. "Darn. I hoped it would work."

Seeing a guy like Alex pout was a bit surreal. On the other hand, their current situation was as surreal as it could be, so that said very little about the situation.

"Well, it was worth a shot. If you want something from this… Oh, hey, it's a jeweler shop. I kinda want to rob it? I like jewels. Anyway, if you want anything, you're free to have the first pick. I'm going to go and check the rings."

"Go right ahead, I'm going to check the register for anything cash related. Might as well get something out of this… You think Rodin sells drinks based on red orbs or legal tender?" Sol asks before pulling a few bills from the busted machine.

"Because that could go very well towards a victory drink." He finishes before pocketing the bills, showing the register over the counter and unfolding the pamphlet to its map section. He shifts position occasionally, looking the square outside for map orientation reference before nodding to himself and planning a route.

"Dunno. Probably?" Alex shrugged, before finding a couple of rings he liked: one was shaped like a snake that was biting his own tail, the other was a full on claw ring that covered the entirety of his right middle finger, made of silver and with a gem at knuckles' height.

"Well, I'm mostly done. I'll just…" And he broke a few more glass cases, grabbing as many jewels as he could and sending them to the extra-dimensional space that he got from Rodin. "I'm going to sell them once we're back. We'll split the loot."

After that, he calmed down his trembling hand and wiped his eyes. The 'robbing the place' spectacle had gone on long enough that he had managed to swallow the painful bolo of air and hopelessness in his throat.

"Do we have any water? And did you find the path towards the Market?"

Sol is quiet for a moment before cursing to himself. He continued, "No on the water, I think I was enjoying the energy high too much to remember. As for a route, we go straight on Hoight Street up from Pawn Avenue for three blocks. Take a right into and through Pawn Street Mall, follow that to its other end and then it's a straight shot to Burrow. What do you think?"

Alex nodded, before pointing to the back of the store. "I'm gonna check if there is a bedroom or a storeroom. You never know, maybe there is a challenge room or something in here." He shrugged, before opening the door to the back - it wasn't closed - and strode in.

A moment of silence passed, before a winning shout came from the inside. "Called it! On both counts!"

"Ah well I hope there isn't a body this time!" Sol shouts back before walking in after Alex. He noted that there was a door called STOREROOM and another weird looking door. "Guess that's the challenge room. Alex?" He called out.

Alex got out from the strange room a moment later, face still dripping with water. "No, this is the bathroom. The challenge room is behind that shelf." He pointed at the one that rested at an angle against the corner. "There's the portal on the wall, you just can't see it from this position. Go and drink something, that armor must be sweltering. I'll wait for you here."

Alex gently pushed Sol towards the bathroom, leaning against the wall without saying much more.

"Yeah, okay. Kinda feel like an idiot for not seeing that earlier." Sol said before taking off his helmet and taking a drink.

"Ah… people can claim alcohol all they want, but nothing beats a cool draft of water. He looks at his reflection in the mirror, specifically the bandage around his brow before reaching up and removing. The wound is gone, without a mark to show it was there.

"Okay, so Blue Orbs are amazing. Good to know." He said to himself before putting on his helmet.

"Alright, let's see what's behind secret door number 2." He said to Alex as he came back.

Alex smirked at him, before following him behind the slightly askew shelf. And the scribbles on the wall changed to form a portal into… somewhere else.

The multi-color light whisked them away, only for them to find themselves atop an unstable platform. Beyond five more platforms, there was something that shed blue light all around.

"Ok, so. Not touching the ground, I'm assuming." Alex said, before looking at the platforms. "These look pretty unstable. You should go, I'll cover you from behind in case some demons start appearing around the place." He mimed cocking a shotgun with his umbrella. umbrella which, to be fair, was way more dangerous than a shotgun.

"Sure thing, Air Hike don't fail me now." Sol said before jumping to another platform.

When he landed, nothing happened. Looking back to Alex, he shouted, "Anything?"

"Not that I can see!" He shouted back, making Sol notice that he didn't have his glasses on anymore. "There is nothing coming from the ceiling, nothing from the walls and nothing from the floor. But be careful, it looks like the next platform is slightly more distant than the previous one!"

"Alright!" Sol responds before jumping to the next platform. Again, nothing happened.

"Okay, let's try the next one." Sol said before jumping over. However, this time the platform began to violently shake forcing him to jump a second time. The final platform started shaking even more violently.

"Shit, shit!" Sol shouted before jumping for the blue light. As he did, he realized he wouldn't make it. "Stinger!" he shouted, forcing himself forward and into the light. There was a moment of stillness before the back room reappeared around the two.
"What was… that was… ohhh… I did not like that. What is this anyway?" Sol asked between breaths.

"Puzzle room?" Alex 'answered', before pointing at where the portal once was. "All the same, you got a prize." In fact, another piece of a blue orb hovered there, just waiting for Sol to collect it.

"So that makes one half, huh. Makes you wonder right, what'd happen if the others tried this?" Sol left the question hanging before continuing. "No point in asking that question now. Off the Hoight Street." He said, pocketing the orb fragment and walking out of the store.

"Yeah, better shake a leg." Alex followed Sol out of the room - and out of the building itself - only to find out that things had… changed. A little.

Specifically, the street that had been pristine, mostly, was now covered in corpses.

"What…" Alex was speechless, his face rather green, as he beholden what was in front of him: corpses that had been gored or ripped apart, some had been crushed, reduced to a pulp, while one had the entire chest completely caved in.

"The fuck?" Sol finished before trying to look away. "Where'd all these bodies come from? We weren't gone all that long!" He shouted in terror before frantically looking around the street. But as he looked he noticed something about the bodies.

"Alex, look at the jackets. Look at their jackets! It's the third team!" Sol said.

"Wait, what?!" Alex's eyes moved from his position to the guy with a caved-in chest, only to see that… Sol was right. The clothes, some of the remaining faces…

"How… Who-What could have…" He couldn't even manage to compose a single sentence. Then, a voice was heard from the middle of the corpse mound. Someone was still alive.

"Hang on!" Without waiting, Alex threw himself in the middle of the carnage, moving towards the bigger group of corpses, already moving some.

Sol wasn't far behind, trying to move through the mound and reaching the moving figure just after Alex did.

It was the leader of the sports group. His ruined jacket barely covered a gaping hole in his chest, and it was by the grace of his enhancements that he was still alive at this point.

"What happened to you!?" Sol asked.

"S-ix… people… red eyes… They… killed. Laughing…" His eyes were already glassing over and his words were barely audible. He devolved into incoherent mumbling, the only word that could be recognized was 'sorry' and a series of names.

He died a moment later.

"You think it was the business crowd?" Sol asked quietly, while looking around the street.

Alex was frozen in place, before shaking his head. "He mentioned six people. With red eyes, I think he said. I don't remember anyone like this between the business people." He didn't take a deep breath because he didn't want to breathe in the smell of decaying meat, but he took a couple of steps back.

"Maybe demons that could be mistaken for humans? They did appear in the series a couple of times, didn't they?" He didn't notice this, but he was looking around the street without stopping.

"Yeah, yeah. Like Baal and Moedius, or Trish and Lucia… But why leave the bodies? Wouldn't they want that power? You gotta figure that a high degree of red orbs here right?" Sol asked, still scanning the street, gun now out, trembling in his grip.

"Maybe they have taken the Orbs from their bodies without touching them somewhat? I don't know." Alex didn't shout, but the way his voice was pitched, it was clear that he really wanted to.

"There's an easy way to find out, however." Calcabrina appeared in his hands and he tapped the tip against the corpse near him. At first, nothing happened.

Then, a moment later, it vanished into motes of light and a rather big amount of Red Orbs came out, before being absorbed from Alex.

He was both green and pale. "Five Hundred and fifty three orbs." His voice was trembling and he was trying to gulp down on nothing, the urge to puke rising.

"They didn't even bother taking the orbs." Sol said before tapping his pistol against another body. After they were absorbed, Sol stated, "450 red orbs. Oh god… we… can't… fuck we can't let this all go all to waste… dammit!"

The two began to touch the various bodies, breaking them down into their red orbs. In total each came out with a sickening 50,000 red orbs and more questions than answers.

"I… I guess we can spend all these when we next reach a statue or one of Rodin's gates. I… wish we got their names, they didn't seem like bad people." Sol said sadly.

"They… probably weren't. Probably they were just… kids. Damn, I'm sounding like I'm who knows how old and I'm just thirty-two." Alex shook his head, before turning towards the direction they would need to go.

"That way, right?" He was somber in his delivery.

"Yeah, three, no four blocks up, a right, a walk to the other side and then a straight shot." Sol said shakily.

"Let's… Let's go." Alex started walking, soon joined by Sol. The silence weighed heavily on them, the event that they had just faced incredibly heavy on their mind.

Still, they were powerless to change it.

************************************************

Sadly, the path to Burrow Marketplace was not a straight shot. As soon the two turned the corner from Hoight Street onto the outdoor mall, they ran into a problem. While they could easily enter the mall, the path further on was blocked by a series of deadened Qliphoth roots.

"Well shit, looks like it isn't the straight shot I thought it would have been. We may have to go around." Sol said pensively.

"It's… Yeah, it looks like that. Do you think that we can cut the roots or are they just… Impossible to destroy?" Alex asked, wondering about it. Before Sol could answer, he took out his sword and tried to slash at the 'wood' in front of him.

Without any result whatsoever.

"Yeah, ok. That tracks." Sheathing the sword back, he turned towards his companion and shrugged. "I cannot cut them. And I kinda don't want to try and shoot them, in case they start attacking us."

"Right, best we see if there is another way around. All we have to do is make sure that we keep the potential exit to our right and we should be good." Sol said contemplatively.

Sol looks around the section they're in before remarking. "Man, I would have spent so many days trying different cafes around here… ah dreams for a better day. You ready?" Sol asked.

"And now I'm hungry. Thank you." He falsely complained, before his face twisted into a sight of disgust. "Never mind, I'm not going to get hungry for… a while. After…" He waved his hand towards the road behind them. "You know."

He joined Sol and the two started walking down the street, trying to keep the right direction to their right.

"Do you think we will meet more demons? We only have met that single group of scarecrows."

As soon as he said, a gaggle of scarecrows burst the upper story windows to the street below.

"Goddamn you Murphy and your laws…" Sol groaned out before drawing his sword and gun. "I'll play distraction." Sol said before losing a stinger into the small group of demons.

"Sure." Considering that the impromptu Stinger had taken all four of the Scarecrows, they were all grouped up in front of Sol. Alex started charging the shot and, after a moment, he released it towards them, exploding them up.

It wasn't enough to kill them, but it was enough that several slashes and burns appeared on them.

"They're all yours!" Alex shouted, while charging another bullet, in case one of them managed to escape what Sol was going to do.

"Got it!" Sol shouted before stabbing a scarecrow and using his free hand to hold its blade arm aloft before lining it up with the other three demons.

"Alright, let's see if this works. Stinger!" And so he went rocketing forward catching one demon and sending the other two flying. The two impaled scarecrows dissolved into black mist while the other struggled to stand.

"Take their orbs Alex, we'll never know how much we'll need."

Alex shrugged, before shooting the remaining two. The explosion sent them flying in the air. Once they were there, he started juggling them with several shots, until they disappeared into black mist.

Red Orbs rained down.

Silence.

"Weren't those… a bit too easy to defeat?" Alex asked, looking down at Calcabrina with a puzzled look in his eyes.

"... Yeah, they were, weren't they. I mean they were the fodder enemy in 4, but even then Nero and Dante had to seriously hack them up. Maybe that was just a gameplay thing, and these physical boosts are really worth their weight in orbs. We should get moving, no telling when something legitimately stronger is going to come our way." Sol before looking at the next intersection before calling out, "Looks like we can take a right at this junction."

"I mean, maybe they're just… weaker? It could be that. The Qliphoth could have an effect on them. Or… something." Alex was muttering, not really believing what he was saying. Still, it was his theory.

"Also, another thing about the game: why aren't there any Empusa? I mean, we've seen enemies from the other games, but no demonic ants yet. Doesn't it make you wonder why?"

"Maybe they're all up topside or downside trying their best to get at easy prey? We should keep an eye out for them or really any other enemy from 5. Always got the vibe they were the hardest enemies bar none." Sol said before stopping at the next point.

"So close, yet so densely rooted..?" Sol said gesturing to the mass of roots that blocked the exit. "I can actually see the next street over through the roots. Ah gotta be an open point. Hell, I'm almost willing to just climb over them."

"Aren't those roots moving?" Alex pointed out, aiming his finger at certain spots of the roots that were actually moving and writhing a little, like they were made of flesh instead of plant matter.
"I'm not sure if it's a good idea to climb on them, really." He looked… pretty unsettled by the notion.

Which was fair, really. Considering the fact that it was a human blood drinking tree and the two of them were very much humans.

"You're probably right… Let's find another path." Sol said quickly before looking around, picking a direction and walking. A few moments later, he shouted out, "Found it!"

Alex blinked. "Well, that was fast." He looked at Sol, unsure of the situation. The way the roots were placed, as if the way forward was blocked on purpose was… suspicious.

"Do you think that we are being herded somewhere?"

Sol paused mid step, before sighing and drawing his sword. "I feel like an idiot for not seeing that earlier. Get ready, maybe they'll be some plant demon or something up ahead."

"Like Alraune from Bayonetta 2? Because if it's something like that, I'm not sure we are good enough to defeat her." Alex appeared worried, but he still walked forward with Sol. "Are there any other plant demons in the series?"

"Well there was Echidna, but she was more of a snake plant hybrid, uh… wasn't there that parasite demon from 5? The really, really stupid one? I'm going to kick myself if we get herded by that guy." Sol said with a grimace.

"Fuck off, bitchboy!" A voice came from behind them. When they turned, they noticed that they were in a small plaza surrounded by tall buildings, buildings which were perforated with the roots of the demonic tree. From one of them, a creature that resembled a humanoid only by chance came out, like a red, wriggling, giant worm.

Alex gulped and took a step back in disgust.

Nidhogg, Parasitic Fiend​

"Oh, fuck me." Alex swore, paying attention at the place. The three heads of the roots that appeared in the game had appeared here, too, but they were positioned in a different way: one behind them, one to their left and one to their right, with the main body in front of them.

"No, fuck this guy. We got tricked by this!" Sol shouted angrily.

"What is, this!?" The demon questioned angrily.

"You! Here's what'll happen! First, we'll kick your ass, then I'll kick my own ass for not realizing your game sooner!" Sol shouted.

"What GAME!" Nidhogg roared.

Sol stopped before looking at Alex, "He really is an idiot isn't he?"

Alex looked at Sol, then at Nidhogg. Then at Sol again. "Look, could you… I don't know, NOT sink to his level? I mean, with him here the bar is already in Hell - pun intended - you don't need to start Limbo dancing with the devil." He delivered his own opinion with a deadpan tone of voice.

Nidhogg bristled at that. "Are you calling me STUPID?!" His shout made all the roots around tremble in reflected rage. Alex looked at him, genuinely surprised.

"I… thought it was obvious? Yes, we are."

"GRRRAAHHHH, I'm Going to Kill YOU!!!" Nidhogg roared before sending his three tendrils at the two.

 

[Atma]

Spoiler: Boiler Poppet: Infernal Janitor

This demon is a more enhanced version of the Fetish, which in it of itself, is a variant of the Marionette type demons. Clad in Blue Overalls, the Boiler Poppet wields two large flaming blades, and its body is covered in several open vents. These vents emit gouts of flame.

Suggested Listening -- Firewater

Spoiler: Madam Aranea: Devilish Matron

This highly evolved version of the Marionette Demon resides in a zone called 'Girls Academy for High Class Ladies', where she rules with a steel fist and steelier rules. Whoever breaks one of her rules, will soon turn from 'student' to 'lunch'.

Suggested Listening -- A More classical variant of Red-Hot Juice

Spoiler: Nidhogg: Parasitic Fiend

A fully grown variant of a demonic parasite that commonly infests the Qliphoth. While these demons are vicious, they are particularly stupid and can be easily overcome with enough planning and wit.

Suggested Listening -- Splitting Fool (DMC 5)

Spoiler: Archaic Steed: Deep Geryon

A particularly ancient example of the rare Geryon race of demons. This demon utilizes its control over time to overcome the limitations of its aging and weakened body. Despite its bestial nature, this demon has a shocking degree of intelligence and cunning.

Suggested Listening -- Executioner's Chariot (Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin)

Spoiler: Hraesvelgr: The Stymphalian Tree-Eater

A bestial and metallic demonic bird capable of chewing through the roots of the Qliphoth. Operating on pure animalistic instinct, Hraesvelgr has a high degree of tenacity while pursuing. Its size, strength, and ability to unleash sonic blasts makes this demon a priority threat in areas where it chooses to hunt.

Suggested Listening: TBD

Spoiler: Alan Grabacer: Perfect Hybrid Scout

The Scout and Summoner for the Red Eyes. He was initially an office team manager. Over his career, the nature of his job weighed on his mind, and the strain combined with lack of advancement created misanthropic feelings within him. When he was pulled into Hell, the power on offer and the opportunities to pursue his inner desires made him an early member of the Red Eyes.

Suggested Listening -- George Woodman

Spoiler: Cassandra: Furiously Imperfect Hybrid

A high-ranking attorney at a relatively high-end law firm in Red Grave City. Shrewd, calculating, ambitious, and fiercely driven, Cassandra's life was on a steady track to the top. When the demon known as Urizen created the Qliphoth, another demon utilized this chance to kidnap 6 groups of 111 people, with her being among them. Adopting a rudimentary tribe system, she begins to lead her group with the sole purpose of bringing herself to a higher and higher level of power… no matter how much of herself she gives away. Is 'friends' and co-workers with Joseph Goode.

Suggested Listening -- TBD

Spoiler: Terence Goode: Cold Hearted Prodotes

A high-ranking attorney at a relatively high-end law firm in Red Grave City. Shrewd and calculating, he is, in many ways, the opposite of Stevens. When he and other humans were pulled into the Qliphoth, he created a group in 'opposition' to Stevens with intentions similar to hers. While not as physically powerful as Stevens, his plans and methods are more crafty and subtle. Upon sacrificing his humanity, Goode became a powerful demon specializing in Ice-Based attacks.

Suggested Listening: TBD

Spoiler: Callum Alexander: Necromantic Hybrid

The Sorcerer and Fodder Maker for the Red Eyes. Callum lived a rather dispassionate life, rarely seeing a point in the creation of emotional bonds between individuals beyond those that were absolutely necessary. Upon choosing the demon over the man, Callum used his new abilities to raise his former survivors as undead shock troopers for the purpose of flushing out other survivors and overwhelming any demon that he encountered.

Suggested Listening: TBD

Spoiler: Laura Fanu: Bloodstained Hybrid

The member of the Red-Eyes who specializes in fast attacks and terror tactics. Laura grew up ensconced in vampire literature and developed a strong fondness for some of the more seminal works. Upon entering the pocket of hell that was carved out, she quickly fell in with the group that would become the Red-Eyesand and reveled in the bloodshed she and her fellows perpetrated.

Suggested Listening: Dark Night Toccata

Spoiler: Ceil: The Blackened Knight

A set of living Demonic armor that could manipulate darkness and found within the Sparda Mansion. While its reason for being in the mansion is unknown, the demon did show a great deal of skill in swordsmanship. Upon defeat, its blackened blade was claimed by the survivor named Arthur. Curiously, it seems that with each demon slain, the darkness that stains the blade seems to ebb that much more.

Suggested Listening: TBD

Spoiler: Ivan Barrows: The One Not Worthy Of Title

The least loyal of the Red Eyes, Ivan used the situation to slake his newly discovered sadism. As a result, while he had great potential and raw power, his understanding of the power between him, Gabrielle, and Zeke was much wider than he could have imagined. His tools and methods of attack were shaped around, causing the maximum amount of pain possible.

Suggested Listening: TBD

Spoiler: Semyaza: Watcher of Desire

A Fallen Angel who led the Watchers in their love of humanity. Punished for his actions, he was sealed away in a section of hell where he was eventually awoken from the shedding of demonic blood. He desires to return to the human world, one way or another.

Suggested Listening: Tragic Scream

 

[Atma]

Sol dodged the attack and shouted over to Alex. "I'll take one tendril, you take another, we'll deal with the last one aft-!" He was cut off as he dodged another strike, and cut at the offending limb.

The sword managed to make a deep, but not completely destructive, cut on the tendril before it moved out from his range.
Another tendril shot towards Sol, only for Alex to put himself between the two and block the attack with Calcabrina.

"I'll play defense, you go and attack. Tell me if you want to switch. So, don't worry about attacks from behind." Alex stated.

"Got it!" Sol shouted before moving around Alex's guard and stabbing into the tendril and dragging his blade around the circumference of its body. The main body retracted back, but not before the head at the end hung limply, like a broken blade of grass.

"Okay, that's one slightly down." Sol said before drawing his firing at the main mass of Nidhogg itself.

"Gah! It Stings! DIE!" The parasitic demon shouted before throwing one of two tendrils at him.

Sol dodged quickly before muttering under his breath. "Okay, bullets are only annoyances to greater demons unless you're Dante, gotta remember that."

Alex nodded, before deflecting one strike with his blade - and a charged bullet - and the other with a quick cast barrier around the umbrella. Sure, the barrier shattered, but they were not wounded, which was the important part.

"You know… You are kinda wimpy. I mean, you are all the way up there, we are down here. What, you scared of facing us directly?" Alex asked, casually, towards Nidhogg. The way he had phrased the taunt was more than enough.

"GraaaaaahhH!!!" The main body descended on the duo, the two spikes at the end of his arms gleaming in the light.

Sol began to fire rapidly at the demon, drawing its attention.

"Stinging, Again!!!" Nidhogg shouted.

"Yeah, what are you going to do about it!?" Sol shouted back, before he realized Nidhogg was rearing up and began to arc down.

"Move!" Sol shouted to Alex as he dodged the oncoming rush. Alex listened to him and jumped to the side, Nidhogg landing between the two and starting to wave the two blades like a madman, left and right, without a care if he hit something or not.

"Man, touchy touchy." Alex muttered, already opening Calcabrina and defending from the attack.

As Nidhogg continued attacking, it moved past the two smashing into a wall. Retracting and shaking the rubble off itself, it could be heard yelling, "Where did they go!?"

Sol paused, looked at Alex, and asked quietly, "Did… did he just ask what I think he asked?"

Alex looked pained, his face appearing from above the black rim of his umbrella. "Just… End his suffering. Living without a brain must be too painful. So, aim for the heart, as I'm pretty sure that his head's empty." Even his voice sounded like he was in pain.

"Sure thing, but goddamn, this guy is stupid." Sol replied before raising his sword and letting loose a Stinger directly at the center of Nidhogg's back. The sword pierced cleanly through maggoty flesh and Nidhogg howled before slumping forward. For a brief moment, Sol almost thought it might have been a ploy, but past experience proved otherwise. He still hacked off an arm just to be sure.

The demon remained still, and its orange-yellow skin lost its color before breaking down into a mass of red orbs.

"You uh, remember what I said about taking a bath earlier? I think I want a chemical bath after touching that… thing. Very slimy." Sol said, disgust plain in his voice.

"Now though, I gotta kick my own ass for not seeing that for what it was." Sol continued, before sharply performing a butt-kick on himself. "I was an idiot, but I'm true to my word on that matter."

"Yeah, I think… I think this day has been long enough. I don't have a watch or my phone, but I'm pretty sure that it's been more than twelve hours. Maybe more." Alex closed Calcabrina and stored it away, before nodding at the arm. "Take that, maybe Rodin can do something about it. We have an Inventory, the least we can do is use it."

After that, Alex looked around, until he noticed a heavy double door that was half open from the roots.

"Let's go and… take a shower. Maybe eat something. Sleep. I'm starting to get tired and we cannot allow for any kind of error. I mean, things are going well, no major wounds yet, but you never know." He shrugged, before starting to walk towards the apartment building. "Come on, you almost solo'd a boss. You need a bit of celebration and what best way to celebrate in a hellscape if not going for a bit of break in and robbery?"

Alex smiled above his shoulder, before continuing to walk, without even putting into doubt that Sol was going to follow.

Bonds made in the adversity were some of the stronger ones.

"Hahahaha." Sol laughed. "A few hours ago I'd never even considered it. But now? Hell yeah!" Sol said before grabbing a brick and chucking it into a window.

"Only time we may ever do this, so let's enjoy the surprise discount of 100% off."

Alex looked at Sol, before looking at the window, and shrugged. "Eh, the door was opened, but I know the feeling of wanting to take a brick and open a window." He pushed the umbrella against the remains of the glass and removed the shards. He didn't want either of them to get cut, after all.

"Now, let's find something to eat. If the whole place is like that store, there should be something. Hopefully not spoiled, but let's check, to be sure." Alex climbed up the stairs until he found the first door. It was closed.

"Ah, a closed door. Lucky me that I have brought my passepartout." And he shot a magic bullet at the lock.

"Ta-dà! Open Sesame." He strode in, leaving the smoking hole in the door behind.

As Sol walked and looked around before beginning to sing quietly. "Oh what we got is a blue light special on truth! It's the hottest with the youth! We've got nerves we need to soothe… Ah… Yeah we're definitely going to find something here."

The door opened to an apartment that was in remarkably good condition. As Sol took off his helmet and placed it on the table he looked around. "Nothing seems moved… it's like the people never left." His eyes caught the sight of a silvery silhouette and he smirked. "Found the fridge, let's see if we're lucky or not."

Opening the fridge, Sol found it to be fairly stocked with various foods, vegetables, and drinks. His eyes looked at a cartoon milk that sat innocently on the top rack. "Alright nose, moment of truth," He thought as unscrewed the top and smelled the contents. It was… good, no stench of going sour present in the slightest. Just fresh milk. He screwed the cap back on and checked the expiration date. There was none, just lines and slashes denoting where one should have been. "Right, weird demon time logic going on here. Still have to remember that." He thought before calling out to Alex, "seems the contents of the refrigerator are good, did you find anything?"

Alex was rummaging through the cabinets and the various drawers. "Found cutlery. And potatoes, plus various snacks. All without an expiration date, all still good. Also, check this." He lobbed a potato at Sol. "Tell me if you see anything strange on it."

He didn't even wait for an answer, he just went and tried the oven. "This works."

Sol looked at the potato, almost considered cutting it open with his sword to check but swiftly reconsidered. He had no idea where Nidhogg had been. However, he realized that the potato was fresh. Setting it down, he checked back into the fridge and found a carton of eggs which he pulled out and searched for a bowl.

"That potato was fresh, so was the milk, and then so by comparison…" He trailed, finding a small measuring cup in a cupboard and cracking an egg into it. The yolk came out cleanly.

"The rest of the food…" he looked at Alex, before continuing. "We'll apologize to the owners later, but I figure we just have at the place?"

"Yes. Also…" Alex took out the bag of potatoes and let them roll out on the counter. All of them were exactly the same. "We definitely aren't in Kansas, Toto. Still, they are a nice size. And we have olive oil and there's an orange. We can roast potatoes." He shrugged, before checking the rest of the kitchen.

"The oven works and there's a dishwasher. If there's any meat in there, we can roast it with the potatoes. Also, see if there's anything green. I think I can improvise some veggie snacks. Oh, they have pasta. Shitty pasta." Alex twisted his nose at the box of pasta.

"Barilla. Bah, it's serviceable." There was a clattering of pots and pans before Alex took out a big pot and started filling it with water from the sink. "There are knives in the first drawer there. You take care of the meat and potatoes, I try to throw a sauce for the pasta together? Hopefully, they have something like tomato preserves or pesto…"

"I can make eggs easily. Scrambled, fried, or sunny-side. If we find anything that you're not using, I'll fix it in with the eggs, do like a blend, and pack up the rest I guess. Better than paying Red Orbs for what is probably the most basic of food." Sol said.

"Eh, true. Oh, see if there is any bacon. I think I can improvise a Carbonara. And no, there's no Cream, of any kind, in it. Only eggs, black pepper, and bacon." Alex preempted any kind of question before they even started.

"You'll eat it right and you'll like it." And that was that, for him.

"Cream? Why would anyone put cream into an egg mixture? I can understand adding milk to make scrambled eggs fluffier, but cream?" Sol feigned a look of disgust. "Black pepper is a must though."

"Look, I only know some horror stories I've heard about the USA, so don't ask me." Alex waved his hands in a sort of denial, before taking out bowls and other tools. "Peel the potatoes and cut them around a thumb wide. I'll take care of cooking pasta." taking the filled pot away from the sink and on the stove, he threw a bit of salt in it, before raising the flame to high and covering the pot with a lid.

"Now, the eggs… And to cook the bacon, but that comes later…" Alex put the skillet on another burner, while also dicing the bacon. Before tossing everything in the skillet, however, he turned on the oven, around 220° Celsius - luckily the whole thing wasn't in Fahrenheit or he wouldn't have the foggiest idea - and put a baking tray with high edges on the counter. He then poured some olive oil, enough to cover the bottom, in.

"Ok, once the potatoes are cut, feel free to throw them inside. The meat can be put after, no problem."

"Sure," Sol said before getting to work. It was a relatively quick job for Sol to peel the potatoes. Cutting them took a bit longer, but once they were done, he used the flat edge of the knife to slide the cut pieces into the skillet.

"Okay, that's done, outside of the bacon, anything else?" Sol asked.

"Marinade. Well, basically we need to add what my mom called 'odors' to the meat. Rub some salt, a bit of pepper grains and… see if there's any rosemary, be it fresh or ground in the spice rack. Add a little to the meat and a light dusting on the potatoes. Mix the potatoes before tossing the meat in." Alex instructed while beating the eggs with a pinch of salt.

After checking and then starting to beat them again when they didn't pass his test, he continued. "Put the meat in the baking tray, not on the potatoes, be sure that it's touching the metal. After that, take the orange, wash it carefully, and slice half a thumb wide. Put the slices on the potatoes and the meat. When the oven is hot, put the tray inside for 35-40 minutes at 200° Celsius."

"Okay," Sol said as he began to look for rosemary. In the spice rack, was a small glass container, half full of rosemary. Grinning Sol began to go over the steps in his mind as he went about the dish. He began to tap the edge of the container carefully, to ensure that the potatoes were evenly covered, before setting it down and placing the meat on the tray like Alex said. There was still some space between the two foods and in short order, rosemary was sprinkled on top of the meat.

"Okay, now the orange…" Sol trailed off, taking one of the oranges in the apartment and washing it as best he could. "Half a thumb wide," he said carefully before easing the blade into the orange, trying to get as much out of it as possible. Placing the slices delicately on the meat and potatoes, he checked the temperature of the oven. It was getting there, not quite 200 degrees Celsius, but near enough.

"Okay, just a little longer and this dish is cooking." Sol said.

"Pasta is boiling. Box says…. yeesh, 12 minutes? For this pasta? Damn, it's gonna come out a mush. Ok, eyeballing it is." Alex was muttering something very unkind under his breath.

Apparently it was scathing enough that the cabinet's doors started to smoke and blacken, Alex heedless of what was happening while he was stirring the pot.

Luckily, he had stopped after a couple of moments, so the wood didn't go up in flames. He was still watching the pasta - spaghetti, to be specific - with an eagle eye, but he had started cooking the bacon, so it would crunch pleasantly.

"Hey Alex, I think your voice may be magically charged because while I'm not that great of a cook, I'm pretty sure heat from boiling water doesn't char cabinet doors." Sol said while glancing away from the meat and potatoes before quickly looking back and hoping that they didn't show signs of being burned.

Alex looked at Sol puzzled, before looking at the cabinet. And blinked.

"...I think I was cursing in Enochian? By mistake. It's like… Nope, got nothing." He shrugged and started checking the pasta once again.

"Ah, you'd think curses wouldn't exist in the language of angels but I guess they'd have to vent their frustrations against their enemies in some way other than fighting." Sol checked the stove again. "We've got about 35 minutes on this. What's your time schedule like?"

Alex took a single strand of the spaghetti out and bit into it, before looking at it. "Ehhh… this pasta is rubbish. I swear, you can't find a decent brand of wheat pasta outside of Italy. Anyway, recrimination aside, two, no one minute for it to reach the perfect degree, considering it will continue to cook a little even after."

He lowered the flame under the skillet to the minimum, took out a colander and turned on the cold water, before grabbing the handles of the pot and throwing the pasta in the colander. As fast as he was able to, he tossed the spaghetti in the skillet, mixing it with the bacon and bacon fat.

"Set the table?" He grabbed the eggs and, after turning off the stove, he poured it on the pasta, grated a bit of black pepper, and mixed the whole thing. "Two minutes, no cheese, sadly, so it's not a true carbonara, but it should be good enough."

"Can do." Sol said before taking out two plates, and two bowls, setting them on the table and grabbing the rest of the required materials.

"I figured with the pasta, that bowl related, and the meat and potatoes on separate plates. Knives and forks, because I'm not heathen enough to think that spoons are good for a dish like this… even though I did once eat a potato with nothing but a pocket knife. I'm going to grab water only because I honestly don't know if there is anything other than that here and I'd rather save the celebratory bottles of alcohol until after we're free and clear of this place. Oh! I almost forgot, napkins."

"Fuck, the vegetables. I forgot. No problem, I'll… Gimme a minute." Alex checked the fridge and got out a bunch of carrots and some celery sticks. "Well, this works. But I'll prepare them later, I don't want to eat cold carbonara."

So he just left them on the counter, before pouring the pasta in a serving bowl and putting it in the middle of the table. He sat in front of Sol, gesturing at him. "Go on. I want to see if you like it or not."

It was good, really good. The contrast between the crunchiness of the bacon and the pasta was great.

"Man, this is beautiful. I'll have to write that recipe down because… just damn." Sol said with a look of contentment across his face.

"Yeah, it's passable." Alex, apparently, was a pasta snob. On the other hand, he was Italian, so it wasn't really a great surprise. "Anyway, I was thinking… We should sleep some." He was pretty serious, even if he was eating and talking almost at the same time.

Well, he chewed and didn't talk with his mouth full.

"We don't know how much time has passed, we don't know how long we have in front of us and the human brain is not made to stay awake for more than a set amount of hours before starting to hallucinate. I don't need to tell you how dangerous that would be, do I?" And he looked at Sol from under his eyelashes.

"You're right and this is an apartment… we could probably barricade the door easily enough. I'll take the couch for however long the hours are… You know, I don't know about you, but I have a feeling, I wake up next thinking that this was a strange dream and then… reality will come in and say 'hey man, still in hell'..." Sol said trailing off before his head whipped around to the stove.

"Five minutes left, whew… That could have been bad."

"Yeah. Ah, check that the meat isn't too pink in the middle. Personal preference. Oh, and the potatoes. If there isn't enough oil, they'll burn. I'll prepare the vegetables." Alex took out the empty serving bowls and the two plates, putting them in the sink, before taking a knife and starting to peel the carrots and wash the celery. After that, it was a very simple process: a bit of salt at the bottom of one of the very small bowls, oil until it was covered, and a few drops of vinegar for taste.

"You can use pepper instead of vinegar, but it's already in the roast and it was in the pasta, so I thought of something else to break the taste. Here's how it works." He took one of the peeled carrots, dipped it in the oil, grinding it slightly against the salt, and then bit the oiled part.

"One bowl for me, one bowl for you, dip as many times as you want. They're good, as far as vegetables go. And the roast looks like it needs a few more minutes." He, carefully, didn't say anything about his comment on remaining in Hell.

Mostly, because he didn't know what to say.

Sol quietly went about following the instructions until everything was set. "The meat is cooking just right, but…" He said as poured some more oil on the potatoes, "The potatoes needed more oil." He said as he closed the stove back up, grabbed a carrot, and dipped it into the mixture. "This is pretty good. It's light and I'm guessing it works as a palette cleanser like ginger is to a sushi dish?" He asked between bites.

"Yeah, it can be an appetizer or even the main vegetable dish in a lunch or dinner. Easy to make and doesn't dirty too many dishes." Alex shrugged, snacking on the carrots. "It's called pinzimonio."

Soon, the vegetables had been all eaten, the roast taken out and sliced, the potatoes split and the food demolished.

Hunting demons and running for their lives was hungry work.

"And now…" Alex went to the counter and sliced some bread, before rummaging in a cabinet and returning to the table with several wrapped packages in hand. "Dessert. Chocolate on bread."

Alex shrugged sheepishly. "I didn't have time or ingredients or the recipes to make anything else. Well, I can make ONE thing, but I only thought about it right now, so… There's only this, sorry."

"Not a problem at all." Sol said happily. "There was this place I used to go to, a wine bar. They had really good foods, you know, heavily done, spiced, and yeah overpriced. But the dessert they'd always had on hand was an olive oiled bread, and a small bowl filled with melted sea salt chocolate." Sol said before taking a bite, "To have even close to that, just kinda makes me feel better. So, thank you…" Sol finished before reaching for another piece.

"That sounds pretty nice. I had this when I was a kid. My grandma and my mom. It was a mid-afternoon snack, really, but I… There was this thing…" Alex started ripping pieces of bread, before breaking the chocolate bar apart in pieces, too. Then, he put the pieces of chocolate on the bread.

"Little sheeps, we called this." He was smiling, softly. Before he took a piece and tossed it into his mouth, munching it.

"Little sheep huh… That's a nice name for it. Well, when we get out of this hellhole, remind me to thank them for creating this. It's a nice way to end a meal." Sol said before finishing up.

"You're welcome. And, seeing as we don't have to pay any of this or anything else, we can just load the dishwasher and be done with cleaning."

And he proceeded to start doing exactly that. "Go and take a shower. I'll… I dunno, move a shelf or something in front of the door as a protection. There's two bedrooms, so we can each have one and take a few hours of sleep." Alex was calmly putting things in the dishwasher tray, appearing more relaxed since… the start, really.

"Oh!" Sol said, pausing and taking a look at himself. "Yeah, it won't be a chemical bath but it'll do. Seriously, Nidhogg was just ehh.. Thank you for the meal man, I'll be done in five minutes."

"Take all the time you need, seriously. Nidhogg was nasty." Alex nodded at him, continuing his process of cleaning.

As Sol found the bathroom, he took a lot of the armor. The once shiny steel had taken on a discolored and dirtied look to it. It was easy enough to take off though, and he realized that there were period-correct clothes underneath.

"Right because we can't have a corporate knight in this, have to go the full monty." He said before really looking at himself. He wasn't really in shape before all this, but that had changed.

"I could actually fit into som… no all of my vests… Just an ever-increasing payment of red orbs and you too can get the body of your dreams. Call the Statue of Time and Space at 555-555-5555 for a free browsing session." He thought before getting everything else underway.

Five minutes later and dressed in the aketon and pants, Sol walked back out into the main room.

"Okay, so in my personal opinion, and this is being said as someone whose experience with killing demons is on par with yours, there's nothing better than taking a shower after killing demons. It feels so good. I think I could actually fall asleep right now."

Alex was done and the dishwasher was not running, but it was loaded. He turned towards him and nodded at the door on the left of the bathroom's door. "There are two bedrooms, they are basically identical. Choose one and go to sleep. I'm gonna follow in a moment, as soon as I move this shelf."

It wasn't an exaggeratedly big shelf, but it would be more than enough to block the door, so it was good enough. The point was for it to make enough sound to wake them up, not stopping supernaturally strong demons from entering.

"And then I'm gonna go and fall asleep, too. Now that I've eaten, I'm starting to feel pretty drowsy myself."

"Good… day?" Sol said with a question while looking out the window, "See you when either of us wakes up." He finished before closing the door. He propped his gun and sword on and against the nightstand and laid down on the bed. His head wasn't even resting against the pillow for a full minute before he slipped into a dreamless sleep.

For Alex, it was more or less the same. He tossed his clothes on the nearby chair, and covered himself with the sheets, only in his boxers.

Even if, usually, it took him several minutes to fall asleep, this time only took one.

***********************************************

Sol had woken up in a daze and felt around for what he was used to. His glasses that usually sat on the nightstand were gone and furthermore it wasn't the one he was used to. There was a gun where the glasses would be and a sword leaning against it. It didn't fully click, until he got up and opened the door. The short hallway leading to what he knew as home wasn't there and as he looked out the window, he noticed he could make out the signs down a very unfamiliar street.

He reached to his face to adjust his glasses and realized he hadn't been wearing them. He hadn't been wearing glasses for who knows how long, and yet he could read small print that even with his glasses he'd have a hard time reading. He remembered the previous… whatever the last few hours were. He'd eventually figure out what to call this strange fugue of time but for now, he just sat there, listlessly.

"Fuck," he cursed quietly. "This is all really happening…" He got up as if on auto-pilot and poured himself a glass of water, downed it, and repeated the process before taking out a skillet and preparing enough eggs to feed two people. It wouldn't hold a candle to what Alex made the previous night, but it was the least he could for him. All the while he began to think about the previous hours.

Ever so quietly, he said to himself, "I can see why Dante drinks, and we've been through a mere fraction of his life."

The sound of water that he hadn't even noticed stopped. From the bathroom, Alex came out, with only a towel around his waist, still dripping water, and stopped in the middle of the room, looking at Sol.

"It's real." His voice echoed… empty, for a moment. It was an emptiness of dreams lost. Something unspeakable that had been done and couldn't be recovered.

"It's… We really have been summoned by a demon."

"Yeah… yeah we… but… well silver linings." Sol began, false cheer blatant in his voice as tried to finish a sentence. "We're still alive, we have food, and we have our souls. Can't really say that about everyone else here." Sol made a face as he finished, a look that said 'I'm a fucking idiot for saying that.'

On the table were two sets of plates, and on them was a simple fare of eggs and toast. "I know it doesn't hold a candle to what you made last night but I figure it's good to greet whatever time we exist in with a full stomach."

"I.. Yeah, yeah, I'm kinda hungry. I mean, I'm… fit, now. But both of us have been moving a lot and fighting burns a lot of calories. So we need to eat." It almost looked like he was trying to convince himself and he strode forward, still half naked, still with his hair dripping water.

"There's any ketchup?"

Sol stopped and gave a shocked look before pulling out a bottle and placing it on the table.

"Keep that wretched, over sugar-ed, tomato paste away from me. The smell, I can't take the smell. My cousins would always pour that stuff on everything. Ew!" He finished with a disgusted shake of his head.

"Fine, fine. No ketchup." Alex smirked, before starting to eat.

**************************************

The roads were the same as the time before, even down to the light from what mimicked the sky. There wasn't a feeling of time passing, which was a problem from the start. That also meant that they wouldn't need to worry about being ambushed in the dark.

"Ok, so." Alex looked at the three roads they could take. "We're going left, right or center?"

Sol looked around briefly before saying "Okay we head up to the next intersection and then make a right. Burrow Marketplace should be just ahead of that point."

"As long as we don't get either delayed or the roots stop us again, you mean." Alex pointed out, already walking towards the three-way split. Calcabrina was already in his hands, swinging around like it was a normal umbrella.

"I mean, Nidhogg should have kept demons away from this place, no?"

"That was probably the only thing he ever could have done that was smart, and I highly doubt that it was intentional." Sol responded as he rounded the corner.

"And here we go, one route to Burrow Marketplace." He said with aplomb.

The roots of the Qliphoth, of course, were blocking the road. As a consolation prize, there was one of those clusters of Red Orbs standing there, in the middle of the road.

"I'm either worrying that we have personally offended Murphy or that we are just that unlucky. You want them?" Alex pointed at the Red Orbs, turning to look towards Sol.

Sol slumped forward, slightly defeated. He had really hoped it was an exit… "No you take them, my just reward for having an IQ slightly higher than Nidhogg."

"I mean, a stone would have an IQ higher than Nidhogg… And I'm shutting up now." Alex stopped speaking as soon as he noticed that his words weren't helping and went to destroy the cluster of gems.

Sol went forward to the next intersection while Alex was hacking away at the cluster. Rounding it, he saw an actual open path leading out. "If I had just stepped x amount of feet forward I would have, gahhh!!! Really not helping my Nidhogg comparison." He thought angrily before bringing out the remnant of the demon.

"I am going to turn you into a complex and well thought out piece of death incarnate, so help me." He said to the limb before depositing it back into its holding area. He called back to Alex, "I found the exit… this time!"

"Good!" Alex came back running, shooting his magic bullets backwards. "I found demons!" Following him, six scarecrows turned the corner and shot forward, towards the duo.

"Ah hell," Sol said before firing at the small horde.

The bullets didn't do much but they did annoy the scarecrows to the point where some were looking at Sol. Two lunged forward, and Sol took the defensive, batting back one oversized axe with his blade and pistol whipping the other as it cackled. Sol stabbed that particular one, turned it to where it was facing its fellow and let out another stinger. The attack impaled both scarecrows who quickly dissolved into mist and red orbs.

Before he could do anything else, he dodged an attack from a third scarecrow before backing up and playing defense again.

Alex, in the meantime, was dealing with his part of the scarecrows, keeping them at bay with the umbrella and slashing with the sword.

He wasn't skilled in any way, but he was good enough. Also, he supplemented his attacks with magical bullets here and there, until the scarecrow had turned into dark mist.

The axe blade scraped along the edge of Sol's breastplate as he slashed down. The attached limb was sent flying before a second strike took the scarecrow's head. He turned and watched the other two scarecrows advance on Alex, before letting loose another stinger at the rearmost one.

A charged bullet shot from the tip of the umbrella was more than enough to destroy one. The other got impaled into the sword a moment later, the weapon in its hand scraping against the cloth of the umbrella itself.

"Well, that was… easy?" Ales asked, dusting himself from the remains of the scarecrows.

"Yeah, I guess they really are like bug swarms, more difficult in packs, but easy enough when separated. Let's get going before any more show up." Sol said, dusting off his breastplate, a noticeable scratch marring its surface.

"I wonder… Do you think there are healing spells here? I mean, there wasn't the Golden Orb… At least, I didn't see it. And, to be fair, it's not like Vergil, Dante, or even Nero needed healing magic, thanks to their demon nonsense…" Alex asked, walking down the road, his face set into a pensive look.

"Maybe in the higher stages of magical knowledge, I mean there's always vitality stars for that, in a pinch. But yeah I can see what you mean." Sol said as they approached the edifice for Burrow Marketplace.

"Well we've arrived, look for some cues to see where to go next?" Sol asked while looking around.

"I mean… Do we even know where we are going? It's not like we have any kind of hint on where we need to go or what to do to escape this place. Whatever this place is." Alex waved his hands around, gesturing at everything.

"Plus, we have two business sharks around, six unknown demons/humans/whatever, and who knows who or what else to worry about." He was still remarkably calm, although his tone of voice had a definite edge on it. "We're just fumbling in the dark, as much as it is depressing to admit."

"Don't remind me," Sol said with a sigh. "But I figure the motif here is that we're heading down, so maybe a sign of the train station or lower walkway might be the ticket."

Alex shrugged, looking around. "Well, I have no idea where to go, so… Unless we need to go towards the Qliphoth itself. I mean, it's either that or down, down, down…" He half-hummed the last words.

"Yeah I know, between that and the time aspect, I figure it's safer just to say 'going forward.'" Sol said before looking and catching something. There was a map system routing various subways that should have been in the area. One of which wasn't very far away.

"Burrow Marketplace Plaza Station, a bit of a mouthful but should just be straight ahead." Sol said with surprise.

"Uh. Oh, hey. It says three minutes walk from the dot. Which is.. where we are." Alex shrugged, before looking down the road. It seemed to be clear, no ruins, no demons, no roots, no nothing.

"Well, a turn of good fortune?" Alex asked before turning and starting to walk in that direction.

"Let's hope it lasts." Sol said following behind.

The walk wasn't long, as the station really was that close. However, the issue the two ran into was that there was a large gate separating them from the plaza proper. Upon looking through the gate, the two could not only see the entrance to the subway station but the remains of a large statue and a horse it must have been perched on.

"Hey, is that a Divinity Statue?" Alex pointed at the other side of the plaza. Hidden behind a decorative column and an iron grate, there was the classic gold shine of the divine statue.

"Yes, it is, maybe even a way to Rodin's Gates of Hell is around here too." Sol said before trying the gate. It was locked with a heavy iron chain and lock.

"Well, I always wanted to try this and this seems to be the shortest route. Stand back, I'm going to shoot the lock off." Sol said before assuming a firing position.

*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*

Three shots rang out in the plaza followed by the noise of the heavy chain and lock falling to the ground.

"Okay, that's kinda fun." Sol said as he pushed the gates, "We'll restock whatever we need at the statue, get stronger, maybe find Rodin and…

*CRACK!!!*

There was a loud cracking noise and part of the ruined statue broke off… followed by another part, until the statue fell over to the ground. The horse seemed to move, its stone-like exterior taking on a blue-ish hue as small gouts of demonic flame began to sputter into life. The horse let out menacing neigh before descending from the platform and trotting forward. Two blue, twisting horns sprouted from the forehead.

Archaic Steed: Deep Geryon​

"Oh… oh fuck…" Sol said with horror.

"Fuck me…" Alex was halfway paralyzed.

The Deep Geryon, on the other hand, was not. Instead, it vanished from their sight. Just… one moment was there, the other was gone. He didn't even have the decency of waiting for both of them to blink.

"What… where did he go?!" Alex started turning around, scanning the place to see if he could spot the demon before… anything happened.

Sol moved to be facing directly away from Alex, to cover any blindspots. There was silence in the square and as Sol looked he swore he could see some form of distortion…

"Alex, move!" Sol shouted, grabbing Alex and using his weight to throw himself and Alex to the side. Where they stood, the form of the demonic steed surged forward, trampling the flowers of the plaza and smashing the earth beneath. Deep Geryon reared back before stomping forward and eyeing the two. It stomped his hooves again, breathing heavily before flashing out existence again.

"Fuck… A Geryon. Here. Weren't they supposed to be extremely rare?" Alex's eyes were wild, darting around the plaza with feverish intensity. "Fuck, fuck, fuck. They can mess with Time. Capital T Time. We need to run away."

Apparently it wasn't an option anymore, as the demonic horse appeared from a gray distortion in the air, landed on the roof of the building near the entrance and… with a couple of stomps, sent half of the whole thing falling down, blocking the way back.

"Well that stops us heading back or relying on any form of high ground." Sol said before firing on the horse. "If he tries to drop a road roller on us, I swear!" Sol shouted as the horse leapt down back to the plaza.

"No JoJo references!" Alex shouted, while also shooting as many magic bullets as he could at the Nightmare Horse that had just landed. Some of them had even hit him!

And made him angrier, but what can you do?

"Scatter! We're going to be easy targets if we remain here!" Again, Alex shouted, before starting to run to one side of the plaza, away from Sol.

Sol moved in the opposite direction, firing at the demonic horse while shouting. "Blame The Stupid Files, they're the one that made the connection!"

The Deep Geryon neighed angrily before flickering out of sight once more.

"Where'd he go!?" Sol asked frantically.

"Above you!" Alex managed to shout, his eyes noticing the gray portal opening over Sol. Thanking everything he could think of, there was a very small delay between the appearance of the portal and the emergence of the demon. That allowed Alex to start charging a bullet, trying to, desperately, hit the Deep Geryon between time jumps.

Sol dodged out of the way as the demon slammed down where he once stood before trotting off.

"If only it could stay still long enough for us to… Alex! I'll play the bait, hit him as he appears!" Sol shouted.

The demon horse stood still for a moment, before turning towards Sol, flames snorting from his nose. Then, a charged bullet hit his flank and exploded, making him jerk to the side. It was a very small jerk and the damage was pretty low, but it was there.

"Don't risk yourself too much!" Alex shouted back, before charging another shot while the horse wasn't jumping around through magical portals and stopping time willy-nilly.

"I got it!" Sol responded before firing at the demon. He stopped before aiming higher towards the demon's eyes. "Maybe I can go for the eyes and make him charge blindly."

The bullets roared from the gun, their path true and aimed for the demon's eyes, and then… The Deep Geryon disappeared from where he was a moment before.

That's when Sol heard the sound of hooves clopping from behind him, moving away, but starting to turn. And an explosion, followed by a low whinny of anger.

Sol spun on his heel, noticing the horse beginning to turn away from him before he fired more at its eyes. The Deep Geryon reared back in anger before looking at Sol again.

"That's right, big guy, keep those evil blues on me!" Sol shouted while backpedaling.

A series of rapid shots from Alex flew from the other side of the plaza. Alex, not even bothering to charge the bullets, just shot as many as fast as he could. Mostly, to try and stop the Deep Geryon from going too close to Sol. And it looked like it was even working! More or less. More less than more, but still. The classic death from a thousand cuts. Assuming the demonic horse didn't trample them both before.

Deep Geryon seemed to become more agitated, stamping its hooves under the hail of bullets and magic before leaping up and then coming down in a bizarre pattern of leaps and stomps.

"Fuuuuuck meeee!" Alex shouted, throwing himself into a roll to avoid the giant stallion coming down on him. Then another one and when the third roll brought him where the remains of the statue were, he opened Calcabrina and cast the barrier as well, blocking exactly one stomp and 'stunning' - well, more or less. It was just the sudden stop mid-motion that did it - that made him raise back in surprise.

"Sol!"

Sol let loose at a Stinger at the Deep Geryon's flank. While the attack did not do nearly the amount of damage that it had done on the scarecrows previously, it did further upset the momentum of the demon, knocking it ever so slightly off its center of balance.

"Fuck you!" Alex shouted, twisting and slamming the umbrella against the neck of the demon horse, before shooting a charged bullet with his hand. Channeling through his body instead of a weapon was far inferior, as far as efficiency and damage went, but it worked.

The explosion against the flank of the demon sent him further stumbling to the side, until he tipped completely over.

Sol was on the demon as soon as it fell, stabbing at its exposed stomach as fast as he could while calling out to Alex, "Keep up the fire! We can't let him get up again!"

However, as Sol went to stab the demon again, there was a moment he couldn't quite describe. The noise of the world cut out briefly in a drone and he suddenly found himself stumbling forward mid stab, where the Deep Geryon should have been.

"What… oh shit, he's moving again!" Sol cried out frantically.

"Left!" Alex shouted, moving and putting himself in front of Sol. His barrier appeared between them and the Geryon's charge just at the right moment. The horns of the demon, twisted and very, very sharp, slammed against the layer of magic and reinforced cloth, stopping for exactly one second and a half.

Then, the barrier broke with the sound of glass shattering, and both of them were thrown back by several meters. Luckily, with only a few bruises for it.

"Damn… That smarts." Well, and a headache for Alex, but that was something he was accustomed to, so it wasn't an immediate problem. "I don't think I can block another hit like that. Think of it as a cooldown." Alex, shakily, got up and kept his eyes trained on the Deep Geryon.

"Understood, I'll distract it like before. Hammer with everything you safely can just in case he pulls another one of those charges." Sol said, before moving parallel to Alex and firing at the Deep Geryon. The bullets, while more of an irritation, seemed to catch the demon's attention again and it turned to face Sol.

"I'll try. Do not get hurt, I can't heal." It was something that Alex had already said, but it was worth repeating. Then, he unsheathed the sword and started charging a bullet on the tip of the umbrella part, while shooting normal ones with the blade.

"Will do, just get ready to move!" Sol said while keeping the fire up. He could see Deep Geryon begin that same stomping move from before and Sol dodged to keep out its way. As he realized he was by the gate, he thought of a crazy idea. The horse kept coming, bearing down on him and Sol fired his gun, to keep pissing it off.

"Come on just a little more." The horse was right above him. Sol dodged while screaming "Now!" The stomp he just barely dodged smashed the remains of the gate, and while the warped iron and steel did little to Deep Geryon, it did tangle around the demon's legs.

"That was dangerous, you asshole! Don't you dare die on me!" Alex shouted, before shooting his charged bullet and followed it with another shower of magical projectiles against the flank of the demonic horse.

The Deep Geryon seemed to glitch for a moment, as if he was trying to free himself, but was missing a few frames, before the magic bullets hit him one after another, the dust cloud big enough to obscure half of the giant horse.

It wasn't enough to not notice when he finally got free and reared on his back legs, eyes burning in rage - and literal fire - before vanishing and reappearing near Sol, coming down for a stomp.

It was a miracle that Sol jerked away at the last moment and the hooves slammed against the ground, sending a tremor all around the plaza.

The Deep Geryon was enraged, and also severely wounded. After all the attacks that had hit him, he was bleeding from several areas and some slashes that Sol had inflicted were still weeping blood.

"Can't you take the hint and just die already!" Sol roared as he fired back at the enraged demonic steed. It dragged one of its hooves deep in the stone, and seemed to visually glitch out for a moment before barrelling towards Sol at breakneck speed.

Sol tried to dodge to the side, just barely missing Deep Geryon as he did so. When he got back to his feet, the horse was gone.

"Can you see it?" Alex shouted, looking around, the fear that he was able to keep under control slipping for a moment. Even if he looked like he was doing well in dealing with the situation, he was terrified.

"I… I don't… Think." Sol managed to gasp out between breaths before his eyes caught that tell tale visual distortion. "Your right side!" He shouted as Deep Geryon made its presence known.

Alex threw himself into a roll forward, not even thinking, just reacting. He was fast enough to avoid the first charge, but not enough to retaliate and the Deep Geryon simply vanished again. When he reappeared, he was in the same charge, however, he was in a perfect collision course with Sol.

Sol dodged backwards, avoiding the charge before looking where Deep Geryon had vanished too. He moved next to Alex as quickly as he could. "We need to end this next charge and hit him with everything we got." He said in a low tone.

"You're right." Alex nodded, his grip on Calcabrina tight, knuckles white. "I can cast the barrier spell once more. I stop him, you stab him in the neck?" Alex whispered, eyes darting to and fro around the plaza.

"Can do." Was all Sol's response.

There was silence in the plaza for a few moments before the image of Deep Geryon began to flicker around them. The demon was galloping in a circle before eventually fading out entirely.

"He's playing with us." Sol noted.

"Definitely." Alex nodded, eyes still sharp. As the only one with a defense worth a damn - and no, he wasn't counting the armor that Sol had on him. Against demons of the Deep Geryon's caliber that thing could as well be made of tissue paper… he would need to react as fast as possible unless he didn't want to get both of them killed.

What happened after was a matter of moments.

The Deep Geryon appeared on the other side of the plaza, already barreling towards them, a fiery aura blue around him that was scorching the stone that he was galloping on, horns elongated and wrapped in a blue aura.

Alex pushed Sol to the side, opened Calcabrina, and poured all his magic into the Devil Arm. The barrier spell appeared on the canopy of the umbrella, making it shine with purple-gold energy.

The Deep Geryon impacted it.

The barrier shattered.

Calcabrina flew away from Alex's hands, as he was forced to let it go unless he wanted his wrists to break..

Geryon was stopped, and looked properly dazed.

Sol moved in without a word and stabbed into Deep Geryon's exposed neck. The blade must have found a gap in the armored flesh as it bit deeply. Sol dragged the blade across as far as he could before he felt something rigid in the neck. He gave a sharp twist as a general 'fuck you' and wrenched the blade out.

Deep Geryon reared back in egregious agony, its neighing replaced by a shallow gurgling noise before it toppled onto its side.

"Fuck you, you time stopping prick." Sol said to the downed demon before turning back to Alex.

"Well, it should be cash out any minute, wonder how much we'll get?" He said, exhaustion evident in his voice.

"I don't… Know." Alex was panting, looking at Sol. Then, his eyes widened.

"MOVE-GHRK!!" Alex pushed himself forward, grabbing Sol by the shoulder and pushing him to the left, as the horns of the Deep Geryon slammed against his stomach, piercing him front to back, and through his spine.

He dropped on the ground with a dull thud, blood gushing down from the two entrance wounds. The demon horse, in its own final 'fuck you', rose on his rear hooves and pushed himself forward, toppling onto Alex with all of his weight.

He landed squarely on his… everything from under the collarbone.

The sound of bones breaking apart could be easily heard.

Only then did a veritable storm of Red Orbs appear.

"No, No, NO! You Fuck!" Sol roared as he ran toward the two in a mad panic.

"I…I… fuck! Alex, can you hear me!? I can't… shit I don't think I can move it off you!" Sol grabbed the sides of his head before pacing and muttering frantically, "Can't move his body, shouldn't move his body… He'll die if I don't do something!" He checked the med kit he brought with him from earlier, it had bandages and antibacterial washes but not much else beyond that. In a rage, Sol threw the kit as far as he could before looking around for something, anything that could offer a hint of salvation for his friend.

There was something that caught his eye, something that elicited a mad, crazy, and stupid idea. The statue of Time and Space was right there. Time stopped there, didn't it? It could give him the time necessary to help him. But he couldn't move Alex close enough to touch it!… Maybe if he bridged the gap? Sol stood between the two and gripped the most exposed part of Alex he could see, a hand. Sol then stretched his other hand as far out as he could trying desperately to touch the statue. His hand just barely grazed the statue a few times before it found purchase and the white void replaced the plaza.

He turned back to look at Alex, hoping he was there, and found that while he was, he was still pinned under the demonic horse.

"What the hell.. should I… Statue! Help me please!" Sol practically screamed.

A golden glow appeared in front of Alex's pained face. Blood was dribbling down the corner of his mouth.

Nothing happened.

And then…

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Well, easy mode has officially been disabled for our heroes. I have added two new entries in to the Greater Demon Codex section for the battles that occurred during this chapter, and the next chapter will be released in the next three days. Enjoy everyone.

 

[Atma]

The corpse-like coloration of Alex's body didn't change, but a pale, see-through shape formed above him. Whatever it was, it looked exactly like him, if he was a ghost, anyway.

"What…" His voice was echoing, like he was speaking from the inside of a tunnel. Still, he was coherent and, apparently, lucid.

"I'm… dying?" More or less coherent.

"No, nononono! We can fix this! We're here, the statue is here! I can buy a large Vitality Star and, and I can get you back on your feet!" Sol shouted, a naive hope evident in every word that he spoke.

"Sol… I… I.. I couldn't feel my legs." Alex was more and more lucid every moment. "I'm.. I think the Deep Geryon had… Cut my spinal cord. I couldn't feel anything under my waist. And then… what happened?" He frowned, before starting to look down. At what had happened to his body.

After he glanced at it, however, he stopped and returned looking forward, at the screens.

"I… All of a sudden it got up… and then you were pinned… and I couldn't move it off you! Yo…your hand was exposed and I managed to touch the statue while acting like, like a fucking bridge!" Sol explained manically.

"Sol… I'm… You're the best friend I could have asked for in this place." Alex smiled at him, one hand going to pat his head. Only to pass through him, leaving only a feeling of cold and slight wetness behind.

Alex looked down at his hand for a moment, an indecipherable expression on his face, before looking back towards the screens.

"I… don't think that a Vitality Star will be enough for… this." His voice was slowly, but surely, getting fainter. "I… I think I can feel liquid in my lungs? I want to cough, but not really?"

Chances were, his ribs had perforated the soft tissue of his lungs. Probably in shards. Because this was Hell.

"Bullshit! There's got to be a Golden Orb! There's always at least one! It's always there!" Sol shouted before forcing open the menu and looking. For several long seconds, he looked through the item menu as he felt his heart begin to freeze in terror. He had assumed. He had assumed it would be there… and, and...

"F..fuck…" Sol cursed meekly, and clawed at his helmet briefly, before turning to the statue. "Help him, damn you help him! Isn't that what you do!? Help hunters when they're in need!? Do something!" He cried out.

All the screens in front of both of them disappeared and, for a heart-clenching moment, Sol feared that he had offended the Watcher of Time.

Then, two windows appeared in front of Alex. One was his current balance in Red Orbs.

Red Orbs: 83.800

Right under it, in the second screen, there were three options. No more.

The first was…

Life-Saving Device (L): 25.000 Red Orbs

"Of course…" Alex whispered a bitter twist on his lips. "Of course, there would be something like that…"

Sol didn't say anything, but Alex was clearly hesitating. The option was there, and it was like an insidious poison in his mind.

"Maybe… Only one thing… But.. Let's see if… If there's something else…" More than for his friend, it was for himself. A little, flickering spark of hope.

Perfect Geryon Hybridization (Bones): 100.000 Red Orbs

Again, silence descended.

"I… don't have enough." Alex gulped, for as much as it was a useless motion. Completely useless. He wasn't using his body right now, after all.

"I.. I don't want to die…" He was crying. Tears, pearlescent and transparent, were slowly falling from both his ghostly eyes as well as the real ones.

"Wha… what do you mean he doesn't have enough!? We're sitting on roughly 80,000 each. There has to be something you can do! I'll pay the remaining balance!" Sol addressed the statue with venom staining his voice.

Nothing answered him, but there was a certain feeling of impotence coming from the air.

"Wait..." Alex suddenly had a bit more energy in his voice. "Look…" He weakly pointed at the last option on the list, his hands trembling slightly.

Imperfect Geryon Hybridization (Bones): 75.000 Red Orbs

Sol grew still, the rage leaving his body language as he looked at Alex. "Man if you do this… you could probably live, but…" he trailed off silently.

"Yeah… The lack of Perfect… Means something…" He grew silent, before smiling slightly. "But it's either that… Or selling myself to the demon… That brought us here…"

Again, he grew silent, before his smile turned sharp. "What do you say… Am I going to crave carrots… Now?" He chuckled, silently, before breaking out in a fit of coughing.

Sol gave a sobbing laugh "God, I hope not… Be quick, I don't think you have much time…"

"Yeah… Yeah…" Still smiling slightly, the ghostly finger, almost completely transparent now, Sol was right about his assessment of his remaining time - sliding down and tapping on the Hybridization option.

Then, while his Red Orb counter counted down, he gave the middle finger to the first option. "Not today… Asshole."

**********************************

The duo were still in the Watcher of Time's space of influence after the choice was made. Nothing happened at first until the Deep Geryon's corpse started shining. The bone-like scales slid away, clattering on the ground. The pelt and meat were cut open as if something or someone was butchering it with perfect cuts. The internal organs were reduced into paste and then dust. The bones rose in the air, while the dust created by the organs spread all above them, drying them out. They were shining silver.

Alex rose in the air, his chest not moving anymore, eyes glassy and unseeing. The bones started circling around him, forming a twelve-pointed star all around him, before blue fire and silver dust started to run through him.

The sound of cracking bones could be heard from his body and he twisted, head thrown backward and mouth and eyes open, an expression of agony etched on his face. The fact that he was completely silent while doing this was the worst thing for the entire situation.

Uncaring, the magic continued. It only lasted five or six minutes, tops, but they were the longest minutes that both Alex and Sol had lived through in all their lives.

Finally, the magic was done. The circle had been completely consumed. Alex had changed. His hair was now pure black at the roots, turned silver in the middle, and blue at the tips - landed on the ground with a meaty thud.

Something clattered on the ground near him right after, but it was unimportant.

"Alex! You alright!?" Sol asked with concern.

Alex didn't answer verbally. His hands darted out and grabbed Sol around his waist, before hiding his face in his torso, hugging him.

Sol could feel the strength of the grip he had on him, the muted sobs coming from his friend, and his shaking shoulders.

"It's… okay," Sol began. "You're alive, it's okay, it's okay. Come on, let's get out of here and get some air so that you can clear your head. Alright?"

"I -hic- was dying. I was -sob- dead. It was so cold…" Alex was shaking even more than before. "Thank you. Thank you, thank you. I would be dead without you…"

"You… you shouldn't be. I should have made damn sure it was dead. It was my fault, it was all my fault." Sol said quietly.

"You saved my life!" Alex almost shouted, looking up from his position. He was still crying, tears dropping down from his eyes, but he seemed more in control. And he looked slightly pissed.

"If you weren't here, I would have died in the first room! If you weren't with me, I would have never reached this place! And right now, you saved my life! Without you here, the Deep Geryon would have killed me! And, even if I had managed to defeat him, who knows in what state I would have been?! And who was the one that connected me with the Divinity Statue?!"

"It was… it was me…" Sol affirmed before noticing the item that dropped earlier. It was one of Deep Geryon's horns, broken but still potentially useful. He patted Alex on the shoulders to break the embrace, picked up the horn, and offered it to Alex.

"Take it, use it as a final 'fuck you' to Deep Geryon and all of his accursed kin… A… I don't know what but maybe something to make you feel better about this…" Sol trailed off, a bitter note in his voice.

Alex looked at the Horn, before snorting. "You seem to forget, I have taken his bones. His powers. I'm a Hybrid and, yes, I'm aware it will bring problems, I'm not that naive, I've already given my fuck you to him. Nah, you take it. Ask Rodin to make a weapon for you." Alex closed Sol's hand on the horn.

And then he smirked at him."Get a throwing knife. Who knows, maybe you'll be able to hit with the blade."

Sol nodded, before putting the horn away. Maybe he could do something with his gun instead…

The world snapped back to the plaza and Sol gazed out on the carnage before his eyes naturally found the spot where Deep Geryon finally fell. Slowly, with trembling hands, he removed his helmet and stared unblinking at the pool of blood that was left behind.

"There's so much..." Sol said quietly. There was a tremble in his voice as he said that. As if, a greater understanding of what had occurred came to him.

Alex gulped, hands trembling at his sides, before taking a deep breath. He - hesitantly - moved a hand and put it on Sol's head, ruffling his hair. "Thank you for saving me."

Then, steeling himself, he strode forward, purposefully walking on the giant puddle of blood and moving to where Calcabrina had fallen.

There was a noise behind Alex, the clatter of steel against stone. Turning, Alex could see Sol had thrown his helmet to the ground in rage. There was a furious expression on his face, before the other man looked up at the sky.

"You say I saved your life, well I know damn well I wouldn't survive this long, and even if I did… I probably would have taken those poisoned enhancements. How many times did I whiff a throw!? How many times did I draw a large crowd of demons, ones that when we started would have torn me to shreds only for you to blast them into dust!? You know why I'm still alive!? Because you kept them off me. Because you helped plan shit out with me and prevented me from pulling stupid shit! And what do I do to repay you? I forgot to check the kill, and you nearly got trampled and gored to death for it!"

Sol was quiet before speaking softly. "I just… didn't think… and you nearly died because of that."

Alex gulped, his hands tightening on the handle of the Devil Arm, before moving forward and grabbing Sol's shoulders.

"Listen. Listen to me. Yes, you fucked up in that. I fucked up in other ways. We both fucked up and we will fuck up again, it's how these things go. We are still alive. You saved my life. I don't care about anything else, ok?" He shook Sol a bit, keeping his attention on him.

"You saved my life. You fought with me, you didn't betray me, you listen to me and you don't take any shit from anyone. You didn't go with an objectively stronger party when you had the chance. There could be Dante appearing from that street right now, offering to become my partner, and I would still choose you. Do you understand?" Alex's eyes were blazing with conviction, shining with a slight light blue tinge.

They weren't brown anymore. Now, they had a silver sclera with a black and blue iris.

"I… yeah I understand, thank you. I mean it sincerely, thank you." Sol said before looking Alex in the eye. His expression seemed to change. A look of guilt flashed across his features. "Your eyes, they're different." Sol slowly, before grabbing up his helmet and offering its reflective surface to Alex.

"Uh." Alex just hummed, turning his eyes and seeing how his hair was now. "Gotta admit, I look cool. What do you think?" He smirked and winked, being as obnoxiously flirtatious - jokingly, obviously - as possible. "Does it make me look like an anime protagonist?"

Sol couldn't help but laugh weakly at that. "Maybe you have some hidden special eye-related ability now. Fuck, does that make me your friendly rival?" Sol asked.

Alex snorted, stopping his behavior instantly. "Nah, you're obviously the co-protagonist. Who else would you be?" Shaking his head, he got up and took Calcabrina out.

"I still have something like 10k or so Red Orbs, but I'm not gonna go and spend them here. You, however…" Alex nodded his head towards the statue. "Go and power up. Things are gonna get harder and, if you die, I'm gonna kill you. Also, get some better clothes. Maybe there are some enchanted armors that don't look like you just came out of a Ren Faire."

"I... alright." Sol said weakly before touching the statue.

When the white void replaced the world, he gazed upon the statue in silence. "I… said some shit to you earlier. I can't say whether I'm sorry about that, it's just that my emotions were high, I was pissed. At myself mainly. So uh… thank you, for giving my friend a real option for staying alive."

The statue didn't respond but the now familiar window appeared. Sol scrolled through the options, grabbing Physical Enhancement 2, and watched as his wallet count dropped by 10,000. He felt much stronger than he had before. Despite that feeling, it felt hollow at best.

He went back to the item board and grabbed another Blue Orb. Seeing his wallet drop another 3,000 orbs but also feeling much better than he realized, he paused and looked through the menus. Briefly, he looked at the ability 'Trigger Heart' for 7,500.

"Alex could seriously make good use of that." Sol mused to himself before grabbing a Vital Star (Large). He watched the counter drop down before bowing before the statue and saying.

"Thank you, for both your service and for excusing the words of a distraught friend."

The world returned to the plaza.

"Okay, I'm down to just shy of 70,000… I want to find a Gates of Hell point soon." Sol said while pulling the broken horn out. "I want to use this for something."

"Oh, yeah. The idea of a throwing knife is still in the air. Maybe it could clone itself… so you can hit an enemy with the pommel five or six times at the same time." Alex snickered at his attempt at a joke, before nodding towards the street opposite the one they had used to enter.

"It's the only way that it's still viable. The others are…" He waved his hands towards the piles of rubble around the plaza. "Blocked."

Euphemism of the year.

"So, we need to move. I don't know why, but I'm having a bad feeling, for some reason." Alex continued.

"Well, I wouldn't blame you, all things considered." Sol paused a moment before continuing. "When you say a bad feeling, do you mean like in a general way that you're used to or something else entirely?"

Alex stopped mid-step, before pivoting on the foot still on the ground and looked straight at Sol.

"You're right. It's different." His voice was low, grave. Deadly serious.

"I'm feeling it… into my bones."

A moment later, he fell down on the ground, cackling like a hyena.

"You ass. Pulling a dad joke on me, I swear!" Sol exclaimed before joining the laughter.

That was the only sound that echoed in the air for the next few minutes.

"You know, I think I needed that. Alright Bones, which way do you think we should go?" Sol asked with a smile.

"Considering there's literally a single way… unless you can jump all up there." Alex pointed at the top of the buildings that were still intact and high enough to look around. "And see how the streets are, we can only go blind. Well, half-blind. Do you still have the pamphlet with the map? Maybe we can try to find a place to go."

"Yeah, hold on." Sol said before removing that pamphlet and flipping it open.

"Well, the next closest location is… Clostonbury Theatre. Seems if we follow the main road back and then turn left when first reaching Burrow Marketplace, we should be able to at least see it. The only other location seems to be Alberton Graveyard, but that's a good way past that." He said before folding the map up.

"What's this one? The… Whatever it's called Mall?" Alex pointed to a place more to the right than the other two places. "It looks farther, but I don't remember that from the game. There could be more food." He asked, looking around. "We forgot to grab something from the apartment."

"Yeah we did, there seems to be a fork in the road, halfway between here and the theater. If we stay left, we get to the mall, right to the theater. Okay, might as well try the mall first, there could be a subway station by there. Could take us further down." Sol said.

"There could be more secret rooms or pieces of Orbs. We won't know until we try, after all." Alex nodded, before pointing towards the street. "Let's go and see what happens. Also, what did you grab from the Statue?" He started walking, at Sol's side. "I mean, you DEFINITELY didn't grab better clothes, that's for sure… Maybe you could ask Rodin if he can make you some cooler armor…"

"Again, I like the look. Might improve its capabilities, but I really like the simple fluted look. Feel like I should be charging down a castle in Monty Python's Sir Lancelot style. Besides, the one thing I will have Rodin improve are these." Sol said gesturing to his sword and gun. "I still have the Nidhogg and Geryon pieces. Might as well put them to weapons I'm semi-good with."

"You got the Stinger technique from the Statue. You could always take a few more techniques…" Alex lamented, while the two walked forward.

******************************************

The two managed to make their way through the ruins of the city without encountering many additional demons. Eventually, after they took the left path towards the mall, they came upon its ruined front edifice.

"Well, this place sure looks inviting. Probably is going to beat the Willamette Mall any day in terms of potential dangers. You think the food court is on the first or second level? Usually, it's on the second level if I remember correctly" Sol said while looking at the front entrance.

"I. Literally. Don't care." Alex was shivering very slightly. They had been attacked by several demons on the way to the Mall. All of them Empusa.

And Alex HATED bugs. With passion.

"I just want to sit somewhere and relax without having to deal with giant bugs every few minutes." A bigger shiver ran along his spine, before he strode forward, towards the broken glass doors.

"I want chocolate or candy or something sweet. And I'm liable to messily kill someone if I don't get some right now." Alex continued.

"Well, we'll figure that out when we get there. Speaking of which, I doubt the elevators are going to work if any so… escalator?" Sol asked.

Alex just shrugged, before looking around. It was… big. "Man, these malls were big, uh?" Three floors - the third floor was mostly the roof, but it still counted - and several shops. Decorative flora around. Some of the benches were broken, but the concrete only had a few cracks in it.

And, on the second floor… "I can see some tables and chairs. Probably a restaurant up there. Dunno where the stairs are, though. Do you see any maps?"

"No… oh, wait. There." Sol said before moving to a large display that sat dead center of the hall nearest to them.

"Okay, so the food court IS upstairs… there's also a candy shop near there too, so that's got that covered? No shit, hey look at this, they got a Gamestop here as well. I wonder if Rodin's inventory devices can hold onto a few non-essential items, we might as well get something else out of this right?" Sol asked with a cheeky tone in his voice.

"You, my friend, have just read my mind. I wonder if they have any consoles in stock, I kinda want a couple… Either to resell or to use, I'm not picky." Alex shrugged, before looking down at the map, rubbing away a spot of dried blood to better read the names. "They also have an electronic store. How much do you know about computers? I kinda want one, but I'm broke."

"Well, we do have a surprise 100% sale on our hands… might as well use it while it lasts." Sol said before looking over at an escalator. The stairs were moving, which meant that not only was the power on but that the food supplies were probably still preserved.

"Well, let's see what the cuisine is like." Sol said as he stepped into the elevator.

Alex followed him, idly tapping on the steps with Calcabrina.

"You know, there's something that's bugging me all this time." He started speaking, while the elevator slowly rose, bringing them towards the second floor. "Like… like when you have a word right on the tip of your tongue, but you can't remember it. You know, that feeling?"

Alex's face made a very strange expression, before it smoothed out once again, the umbrella migrating on his shoulder. "It's the same thing, but for something else. It's like… I don't know. Ahhh, it's infuriating."

Sol nodded before speaking "Not to sound like an ass, but you wouldn't happen to feel it in your bones would you?"

Alex didn't answer for a long moment, seemingly lost in thought… before bonking Sol on his head with Calcabrina, strong enough that his helmet echoed like a bell.

"Talk shit, get hit." The elevator reached the second floor and he stepped down, only to stop instantly. In front of his feet, there was a rather large puddle of blood.

"Ah."

"Well, that answers that." Sol said while rubbing his helmet. "I think that whatever is in here, we may not be able to just run from it."

"Yeah, there's no dust in here. Well, there's no more dust than what is normal. Someone came here before us." Alex didn't prod the puddle of blood with his foot, but it was a near thing. "Do you think they are still here? Whoever 'they' are?"

Sol calmly drew his pistol before quietly asking "Maybe… you think that 'they' might be the same ones from the square?"

Alex looked around, noticing that the blood was contained: mostly on the puddle in front of him and then a few more, going towards their right, towards the Food Court.

"I think no. I mean, the only time we met their handiwork, it was a scene of carnage. Here, it's just a trail. Maybe someone was wounded? Searching for a safe place to hide. Not that it exists here, but…" Alex grimaced, actively not thinking about what could have happened.

"Well in defiance of every bit of common sense I have, I say we follow it." Sol said as he drew his sword and began to follow the trail.

It led to a pack of three Empusa clawing at what looked like a store called EAT.

Sol looked at Alex before flipping his visor up and giving him a look saying 'Are you seeing this shit?' while pointing at the sign and not at the demons. The situation finally clicked in the man's head before asking, "You want to work out your hatred of bugs quick? They probably won't even realize you're attacking."

Alex took a deep breath, before nodding. "Yes. I would." Then, he unsheathed his sword - he had decided to call it Brina - and shot forward, a bullet charging on top of the umbrella.

The blade slashed the air two, three, four times, cutting through the flesh of the demon like a hot knife through butter, before he turned one last time, decapitating the head of the demon. In the same twist, he aimed the charged bullet at the remaining two Empusa and unleashed it. The explosion sent them flying back, their cries loud enough to be heard.

"Well, while I am certainly agreeable to man-on-bug violence, seriously remind me to never get on your bad side." Sol said jovially as he walked to where the Empusa were crowding. The blood trail had led to a closed shutter but there was nobody at the front, meaning the trail led beyond it.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. I'm as sweet as sugar." Alex answered, flippantly, before stalking forward, his blade shining in the light coming in from the windows. The Empusa were scrabbling to get back up, but he reached them first.

It was more of an execution, at this point, but he chopped off their heads in moments, the corpses vanishing into Red Orbs.

"I have to admit, that felt good."

"It's the little things." Sol said reassuringly, before trying to open the shutter. He could definitely feel something was holding it down on the other side. A part of him wanted to wrench it up, but something made him stop. That bloodstain might have meant people, maybe… maybe they could use some.

Taking his pistol, Sol rapped it against the shutter rhythmically. "Hello, is anyone there? The demons are gone."

Sol turns to Alex whispering, "Do you think anyone is alive in there?"

"No idea." Alex whispered back, before putting a finger to his lips in the universal signal of silence. Right after that, he turned his head and put his ear against the door, before breathing deeply and holding his breath for a few moments.

Silence. Then…

A breath. Two. More. Alex couldn't really count them all, but he knew that there were more than two people beyond the door. So, momentarily satisfied, he got up and nodded at Sol.

"At least two people." Again, he whispered, before he pointed towards the side of the place and started walking.

"Well, even if there are living people, it's not like we care, no? We just need to find the Divinity Statue and then we'll be on our merry way." He was purposefully loud.

There was a brief moment of pause before Sol caught on to what Alex was going for.

"You're right, they're probably dead. Damn… It would have been nice to meet some other sane people here. Let's find that statue, maybe even raid the food court if we have time." Sol said, matching Alex's volume.

The two walked away, loudly, until they reached the next restaurant. Again, Alex gestured towards it and, this time with much more carefulness and stealth, they hid inside it.

"And now, we wait." Alex was smiling, using the blade of his weapon as a facsimile mirror to see beyond the corner without poking out his head.

Sol's only response was a nod and him raising his handgun toward the EAT.

After a few moments, there was the sound of a shutter opening and a figure walked out. It was… someone younger than Sol would have guessed, male, maybe fifteen, sixteen, wearing mostly black with some well-placed chains and crucifixes. Or at least there were, the clothes had seen better days and the cuts and bruises just barely hidden under the flaps of torn material hinted at a desperate attempt at survival.

"He's just a kid." Sol whispered to Alex while letting the hammer of his pistol drop quietly back down.

"It's worse." Alex's voice was somber. "It's more than one kid."

Right behind the black-clad teen, another one - this one in khaki pants and polo, both that would have looked rather posh if only he wasn't covered in splashes of blood - followed. The second one was holding his grip on a table chair with white knuckles, while the goth kid had a pipe in his hands.

"Something's telling me that there are gonna be more than one kid inside that restaurant."

"I don't think these are our red eyes, what should we do?" Sol asked, unease present in his voice.

Alex didn't answer for a long minute, while he kept watching the two kids. They were busy looking around, almost as if they were searching for something. Or someone.

"I don't know. What do you want to do? Beyond it being impractical or anything else. I mean."

"Maybe… we should just say hi." Sol asked before getting ready to get up.

Alex didn't stop him, even if he had a vague feeling that it wouldn't end well. Considering how fearful the kids had been of them before, there were near zero chances that they could be more welcoming right now.

Sol calmly and quietly got out from behind the counter and walked out of the restaurant entrance. They hadn't noticed him yet, but he made himself known by pulling the hammer back on his pistol. The sound of the pistol going into Single Action was loud enough to catch their attention. The two whipped around fast, their expressions fearful but almost resolute. Behind his visor, Sol looked at their eyes.

"Normal eyes, not red… okay then." He slowly de-cocked the gun, holstered it, and spoke to the two. "Take it easy guys, we're not here to hurt you."

"Who-who are you?!" The goth boy asked, pointing the pipe towards Sol, attempting to be menacing. And failing horribly, considering he was shorter than the guy by several inches and a few tens of pounds of muscle.

"My name's Sol, I'm…" Something was wrong, Sol would never claim his memory was perfect, but he was damn sure he had never seen this kid or the other before. They weren't from the jock group, so who the hell were they?

"I was going to say a survivor like you, but I didn't see you before when we were all pulled together. How'd you get here?" Sol asked cautiously.

"Wh-what? We all came together. Our… It was like…five classes and ten teachers. We were in the auditorium of the school and then we were… Somewhere. In a room. There was this voice, but…" He trailed into silence, instead raising the pipe again.

"But it told you to kill a demon lord and go home with the power acquired here?" Sol asked, finishing the kid's sentence. "Damn, looks like this just became more complicated. Alex, you might want to hear this." He said, calling out to his friend.

Alex got out from his hiding spot, eliciting a drawn breath of surprise from the other two, as they saw his hair and the glowing eyes.

"So. Let me see if I got the news right: you got summoned here with your schoolmates, all of them more or less the same age, and a few teachers. A voice started talking to you, before vanishing. And you got access to a Golden Statue where you could buy powers like RPG enhancements. Did I get everything?" Alex questioned the students.

"Uh… yeah." Said the prep, his knuckles white with how he was holding his improvised weapon before he looked at Sol. "You, you don't have eyes like that do…do you?"

Sol gave out a sigh before lifting up his visor. "Not necessarily yet… speaking of which, you haven't encountered anyone with red eyes have you?"

"Don't worry about my eyes, they are the results of an experimental… thing that's definitely going to bite me in the ass, if I know my tropes, and aren't relevant to this discussion." Alex's voice lowered considerably in the middle of his sentence, but he soon returned to his normal tone.

"So, tell me, how come you and your friend? Are you here? Nobody else remains with your group? Did you get kicked out?"

There was a moment of silence as the two looked at each other before the goth spoke.

"We weren't a large group but we tried to keep together, Mr. Riker wa… is leading us but…"

The prep cut in, "One of the bug things, but uh bigger cut him badly. Fran is with him now but, well we don't have anything to stop the bleeding."

"Then that was his blood trail we saw then?" Sol asked.

"Yeah, probably. Do you still have the med kit you bought?" Alex asked, looking around and then using his umbrella as a cane and leaning on it, mostly for show than anything else.

"Yeah, I…" Sol paused and realized that no he didn't. He had thrown it away at Burrow Plaza when… That feeling of self-hate rose back in his heart like a bitter shadow. However, a ray of light pierced that bitterness as he remembered something he did have with him.

"No, but I have something better," Sol said to Alex before looking at the students and taking out the Vitality Star (Large) from his inventory. "Take me to your professor and I'll have him back on his feet in no time."

"Why should we trust you? Half of those who had bought powers from that strange statue went crazy in minutes! I don't trust you!" Even if the boy looked like he was doing decently, both Alex and Sol could see that he was struggling to not cry.

"I understand you, believe me. There were four groups of us. There was Alex and I, a high school mix of sports teams, and the business people equivalent to a Karen and Ken. Now the two business groups started going, like you said, crazy. I saw the Karen backhand someone so hard their neck snapped, and her rival looked bored of the whole situation. The jock team is gone, wiped out, by a group of people with red eyes. That's why I asked you before if you had seen them. Alex and I, just want to get through this with a clean conscience, so if we can help, then we'd like to." Sol responded in a placating manner.

"How could that many survive? Demons attacked only moments after we had been summoned! Only a few of us had managed to reach the statue. Then we had to run!" It was the prep boy who spoke, this time, following both the boys inside the restaurant they had chosen as a hiding place.

Only four more kids were immediately around, but both Alex's and Sol's eyes were immediately attracted by the bleeding figure on a table.

It was an older man, his once black or perhaps brown hair streaked gray and matted by sweat to his pale face. There was blood pooling around him, a lot and all stemming from a nasty gash across his thigh.

Sol practically let out a hiss of phantom pain seeing the wound. "That's a femoral cut, no wonder there's so much blood." He said before holding out the star, "I can heal with this, do you all trust me?" He asked the group.

"What if that makes him go crazy!?" A girl asked, her voice tight.

"It won't, I've tried myself." Sol lied, but they didn't need to know that.

The kids didn't look convinced. Alex decided to cut the problem at the root. "Look, we don't have either the equipment or the experience to heal him. We either take our chances with something both he and I KNOW will work or he's gonna die. What's it gonna be?!"

Probably it was cruel of him to ask this to a group of terrified school kids, but the time really was short and he didn't have the patience to let someone die when he could save them. More or less.

"Al…alright." The goth began, "But we're watching you." he finished while gesturing with his pipe.

"That's cool." Sol said, before kneeling next to the teacher.

"His breathing is shallow… How much blood has he lost? Alright, let's get some good karma and good luck for the future." He thought before taking the vitality star and placing it in Mr. Riker's hand.

"Mr. Riker if you can hear me, my name is Sol and what I want you to do is crush down on the star in your hands with all your strength. Can you do that for me?" Sol asked softly.

There was no verbal response, but the older man's eyes were partially open and his grip on the star began to tighten until a small creaking noise began to make itself known. This continued briefly before the star shattered in his hand. The light inside and the shards began to flow into the injured teacher and Sol watched in astonishment as the blood began to cease flowing and the wound closed in on itself.

"Not even a scar." Sol said quietly and watched as the teacher's breathing became more relaxed and eased.

"I think he'll be out of it for a little while… we'll talk with the others outside. Can you all watch over your teacher until he wakes up?" Sol asked the group inside the restaurant. They nodded mutely too, to which Sol responded, "Okay cool, we'll just be outside."

Leaving the restaurant Sol looked at Alex and then the two students. "He'll make a full recovery, if you guys escape this place alive, although he won't have a cool scar to show off to his co-workers or at family gatherings. Now, you mentioned earlier that you were part of another group, and how a majority of the people there went crazy after using the Divinity statues right? Did any of you do so?"

"We didn't have the time." The goth said bitterly. " Only some of us managed before the monsters attacked. And they were mostly the teachers. They remained back to stop the monster, while Mr. Riker guided us toward someplace safe. Not that it mattered." He spat on the ground.

"We got attacked again. And again. And we started… losing people… when the attacks…" He started sniffing, tears collecting in his eyes.

"We understand, look this isn't easy for you all, but you're still alive and haven't lost it like the others so that's good. Alex and I have been traveling…" Sol pauses briefly, trying to understand how to say this part properly.

"Technically down is up and up is down here. So, we've been heading up in this place despite physically heading downwards. I know it doesn't make sense, believe me, my head hurts just thinking about it."

"Don't confuse them too much." Alex muttered toward Sol, before turning towards the Goth boy.

"Look… What's your name? I can't keep thinking of you as Gothboy in my head, it's getting kinda silly." Alex appeared vaguely embarrassed about his question, but he didn't know what else to do.

The goth sniffled, before answering. "Name's Kurt."

"Okay. Look, Kurt. I'm not going to tell you where we are, because I'm not sure myself. I'm gonna give you a couple of pieces of information, though: First, I'm sure that whoever or whatever brought us here didn't have our best interests in mind. Second, I'm sure that the discounted version of a power at the statue - you'll see if and/or when you reach another one, trust me - are not to be trusted. Third, the monsters that have been attacking your group can be defeated and even killed. We would know." He smiled thinly. "We've done it."

"Many times." Sol affirmed before placing several items on the table. It was his gun, hand axe, and knife. "You guys need better weapons. Now the handgun cost me 1,000 orbs, and the dagger and hand axe are 250 each. Now, following up on what Alex said, any item or power except the Vitality Stars that have an 'L' prefix next to them should be avoided at all costs. In regards to the vitality star, that's just a denotation of size. I used a Large variant on Mr. Riker."

"Does that mean that you're going to be weaker at the start? Yes." Alex raised a hand before the inevitable protests started. "Listen. Do you remember what the Voice said at the start? The power that's inside you right now is something that has been lent to you. It's not yours. Whatever entity has given it to you, they can most probably recall it back whenever they want."

Sol nodded and followed Alex's train of thought, "So the trick is to cultivate your own power without using those discounted boosts. Buy weapons, blue orbs, and save up for the non-discounted physical and magical power boosts. Also if you see a red portal thing by a statue, use it. That's a way to a place called Gates of Hell. Before you say anything, I know what it sounds like, but it's a bar that doubles as a better place to get weapons."

Alex held Calcabrina in his hands and unsheathed the sword. "Very, very good weapons." He smirked, before closing it back again.

"Any questions? Yes, you all of you inside, too. I can hear your breathing. You lot aren't as silent as you think, especially in your numbers."

Sol gave a look to Alex. He hadn't… oh... right.

A voice called out from the restaurant, "What did you mean about Red Eyes?"

Alex winced. "Yeah, okay, so. There are at least two more groups of people that have been summoned. Probably more. We only know that a group of six people have red eyes and like slaughtering others. Nothing more. So, pay attention and try to stay safe. DON'T try to fight them: their last handiwork was… what, around thirty people, more or less." Again, Alex winced, before shrugging sheepishly.

Sol responded in a shaky voice "Yeah, I'd say about thirty people. They were a, uh mix sports teams maybe not all that much older than you guys. Made their own group and seemed pretty stable. Alex and I were checking out a building in a city square not all that far from here when it happened. Didn't even hear it, next thing we knew, we're walking outside and there were just… bodies everywhere. So if you do see them, hide and hide well. Not telling if they're human or demon, but they're a danger either way."

Silence greeted that answer before the sounds of someone walking away could be heard. Several someones. Alex looked pretty contrite but didn't say anything.

Prep boy looked green, while Kurt had to take a couple - well, more than a couple - of deep breaths before he could continue speaking.

"Thanks… for the information. Is There… there anything else that we should know?" His voice was still a bit shaky. Information overload and fear, probably.

Sol nodded before continuing, "Watch out for the two business groups that started out with us. Their leaders are definitely not all there in the head anymore. I don't know if they'll try to kill you or pressure you into their service, so just stay well clear of them."

Finished, Sol looked around before asking, "You mentioned divinity statues earlier. Is there any in the place? We've been looking into resupplying and well there seems to be a pretty good chance of one being here."

It was the prep boy that answered that question. He sounded a bit like he was a singer. "The… uh, the Gamestop on the other side of the mall. I saw it there when we were running." He was sweating nervously.

Alex nodded. "Thanks. Look, we're going there. If we see any big demon or a big group, we'll try and see if we can take care of it. Either way, we're going to come back and tell you what happened, okay? You try to keep safe and, more importantly, healthy. Eat something, if one of you can cook. And don't leave the gas open. An explosion is going to be dangerous, especially now."

With that, he turned and started walking down the hallway, near the railings.

As Sol began to follow after Alex, Kurt called out. "What did he mean about demons?"

Sol turned, lifting up his visor to give them a serious look. "These are demons, no other explanation for them. Hell, that power-up we told you to avoid is called 'Demonic Strengthening.' Just be careful from here on and take those weapons with you. They're not the strongest, but they're useful and the pistol doesn't need to be reloaded." Sol finished before catching up with Alex.

"Okay, so they didn't know that these were demons and they kinda asked me about that. Kinda generalized an answer but what can you do, right?"

"Yeah. It was a lapsus, I didn't want to say that. But it slipped out." Alex nodded at Sol, before looking forward, towards the other side of the mall. "A statue. You should have a lot of Orbs to spend, no? Any plans on what to buy?"

"A replacement pistol for starters. Then I want to head to Gates of Hell and use the component parts, get better weapons if possible, and then some better abilities for them. You?" Sol asked.

"Eh, I have only a little remaining, but I think I want the next level of both magic skills and something for Calcabrina. Maybe the Mystical Enhancement, too. Who knows." Alex shrugged, before twirling the umbrella like a baton. "I was always horrible with money."

"Well... I'm still sorry you didn't have more to work with, I'll try to get you as much as you need." Sol said quietly before they two came upon Gamestop.

"Dude, just stop. You saved my life, you help continuously, you don't have anything to do to repay me. We'll probably end up saving each other a few more times before the end of whatever this is." Alex shook his head, before looking at the Gamestop with a small smile.

"You know what? Fuck it. After the shit we've been through and will go through, I'd say the bastard who sent us here owes us another we 100% discount, no?" Sol asked.

"Oh, definitely. Now, if I remember correctly, most of the new games are in the back. But first…" And he went to the hanger where the cards for the online stores were before taking them all.

"So, I'm going to split these two in half. I'm going for Playstation and Nintendo, you?" Alex continued.

"PSN mainly. I jumped off the Xbox train when Bloodborne was coming out. Not repeating the same mistake as I did with Demon's Souls. Now, I wonder if they have anything that I was putting off for wish list purposes." Sol responded while looking at various shelves.

"I have NO idea. But I'm going to take a couple of things I wanted and never got. The Final Fantasy with Zack as the protagonist, the new TWEWY, probably a couple more. I wanna browse before choosing anything. Oh, and maybe a new console or two, if there are any."

While he talked, he had split the bounty in two. The PSN ones were split in half, and so were the Nintendo ones. "Here we go, half and half. Maybe look if there's a new Switch for you, too. It has some great games." Alex said as he waved his hands towards him, before pocketing - in the inventory - his part of the loot till now. He handed the other half towards Sol. Then, Alex blinked.

"Ohhh, check if there are games that are only in this… dimension or whatever. I'm gonna assume that they won't have Devil May Cry and Bayonetta here."

Taking his share, Sol sighed. "Didn't even think of that. It really would be too easy for us to get more of an inside track than what we already have." Sol said somewhat bitterly. "Still, thanks for thinking about that."

"You know, I'm happy to have known you. Even with the whole.. thing. You're kinda great, as a person and as a friend." Alex said after a few minutes had passed.

Sol responded, "You too man, thank you for having my back for all this time." A note of genuine happiness in his voice.

"Always. There are a few things that can create a strong friendship, but facing a Demon Boss together definitely counts." Alex was smirking, clearly proud of having done… something.

"Damn straight, let's keep the good times rolling on that and we'll be able to enjoy all this, cause I don't know about you, but I'll take these as a consolation prize." Sol said.

"Still better than a t-shirt." Alex chuckled, before looking around. "Did you see the statue? This place is bigger than the one near my home, so I'm not sure where the counter is."

He started looking on the shelves for interesting games while walking, stopping a couple of times to check a couple of things that looked interesting, and found that the statue was in the back, between the shelves of boxes that were still packed up.

"Well, we found the unopened stuff and the Divinity Statue, you think a Gates of Hell is around here too?" Sol asked.

"I mean, it could?" Alex had several games in his hands when he answered, blinking owlishly. "The other time we found them, they were near a Statue. It looks like a pattern, so it's worth a try, no?" His question made sense.

"But first, use the statue, maybe?" He nodded his head towards the lion-headed woman.

"Alright," Sol stated before touching the statue. The white void greeted him and he addressed the statue briefly, scrolling through the weapons menu until he came across the option of Enchanted Pistol. Watching his Red Orb count drop by 1,000 points, he bid the statue goodbye and reality returned to normal.

"I'm saving up for what sort of abilities I might get when we meet back with Rodin." Sol stated simply.

Alex raised his hands in the gesture of surrender. "Your money, your choices." Alex said as he started walking towards the statue, before stopping and turning his head towards the doors.

"Something's coming. Let's go and see who."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

The final checking of the chapter fought me like you wouldn't believe. I had thought, that I had completed the final checks and revisions a few days ago. Buuuuut as I went through it this evening, it turns out that that wasn't the case. Due to the lateness of this chapter, the next one will be up on either this coming Saturday or Sunday.

Now, to discuss THE big event of this chapter. All that I really plan on saying at this moment in time, is that Alex is not an exception in this Mimicry-Hell. He's another rule. One that has its fair share of consequences.

 

[Atma]

Sol paused before tapping on Alex on the shoulder. Asking in a quiet tone, "Did you hear something or did you feel something?"

Alex stopped and turned towards Sol, a blank expression on his face. "There's... skittering. Outside. A lot of skittering." He pointed straight towards the door, Calcabrina already in his hands.

"And screeching. Skittering, screeching, something hard hitting something else, like plastic against plastic."

"Okay, we hit them hard and fast?" Sol asked, drawing his sword and readying his pistol. He could now notice the noise Alex mentioned. It was just barely audible in the back store room and without Alex pointing it out, he'd have either not noticed it or thought it was his nerves getting to him.

"I'm ready whenever you are."

"Yes. You go in first and I follow shooting? Or side by side?" Alex asked, already taking out his sword and firmly grabbing the sheath.

"I'll go first, I don't think there's enough space to charge out side by side without tripping over each other." Sol said before moving in front of Alex. Readying his sword, Sol slowly approached the door. He placed his hand on the door knob, looked back to Alex, took a breath and threw the door open while roaring out a challenge and a violent display of movement. Sol only realized that the store was populated by roughly four Empusa as he vaulted over the counter.

He brought his sword down on the nearest one, the blade driving deep into its monstrous skull. As it spasmed, he called out to Alex, "Four Empusa." He wrenched the sword out and brought it down again. "Three Empusa!"

"One." Alex's answer was followed by two charged bullets, before he shot forward, cleaving one in half and pushing the tip of the umbrella in the mouth of one, and blasting its inside with magical bullets in a single move.

Only to stop a moment later, his eyes glowing silver-grey and purple. "I didn't know I could do that."

"Well shit, keep it up!" Sol responded before turning his new pistol on the last Empusa. The barrage of gunfire pushed the demon towards the entrance, where Sol finished it with a Stinger. The Empusa crumpled in on itself before fading into a mass of red orbs. "And that makes Zero…" Sol backpedaled back to Alex while de-cocking his pistol. "Are you hearing anything else?" He asked quietly.

"Hearing, no." Alex gulped and pointed out, towards the front of the store. "Seeing, on the other hand…"

The massive form of a demon appeared from a red portal, the whole thing taking a few, long seconds to emerge. It resembled a praying mantis, landing on all four of her legs. The front limbs ended in two wicked looking scythes, long - longer than both of them, really - and sharp. A human skull was her face and a 'crown' made of blood clots was her crown.

No name appeared in front of them, luckily, but both of them knew what that thing was.

Queen Empusa​

"Oh, fuck you. That was the monster that the kids had to evade?" Alex grit his teeth, looking at the demon outside.

"Well, ain't no rest for the wicked. Same tactics as before?" Sol asked while checking his pistol.

"Dunno if it's gonna work, but sure. Just… pay attention. You don't want to… I don't know, lose an arm or something." Alex twirled his sword with what looked like experience. It wasn't, he was just lucky that it didn't fall on the ground.

"I'll open with a charged bolt, you then use the moment to attract it towards the side?" He was already starting to charge a bullet, his eyes observing what the demon was doing.

Mostly, nothing. She seemed to stay still and surveil her surroundings. On the other hand, she still hadn't seen them, so there was that to thank for it.

Sol gave Alex a flat look through his helmet, before saying, "If she does that, I'm taking one of her arms as recompense… On second thought, I don't want to look like Jeff Goldblum from The Fly."

He got his weapons ready, "You ready?"

"As I'll ever be. On three." Alex pointed his umbrella towards the Queen and aimed carefully at her face. It was risky, but he was a bit more precise with a magical bullet than with guns, so it worked. "Three!" And he unleashed his attack.

As the attack hit, Sol began to move and began to close in on the Queen Empusa. Using the charge shot as a distraction, Sol brought his sword down on the Queen Empusa's leg joint, intent on crippling. Unlike the regular Empusa, the sword did not easily pass through, but the strike did some damage based on how the demon recoiled.

"Try and stay at her back! Be careful!" Alex shouted, before charging another shot and then following it with a stream of normal ones. While he was doing this, he kept walking towards her, planning on moving to the side, to pincer her between them.

"Right!" Sol called back before moving further to the demon's rear. Without grace, he began to stab at the back half of the Queen Empusa, hoping that it wouldn't decide to kick backward.

She didn't. She just jumped, all of a sudden, her shadow darkening Sol's form as she started coming down. Even Alex's shout and the charged bolt didn't stop her descent, her weight too much for him.

As if on instinct, Sol let loose a stinger blasting forward out of the falling zone and past Alex.

"We're the bug stompers, not the Bug stomped!" Sol shouted.

Alex didn't facepalm at that line, but only because they were in the middle of a fight.

Right after that, the Empusa Queen landed on the ground where Sol was a moment before, cratering the ground under her, and shaking the entire area.

"Damn, another jump like that and…" Alex blinked, before turning towards Sol. "Make her jump again!"

"What!?" Sol shouted in surprise before realizing what Alex was getting at. "Oh… oh hell this is going to suck." He said before moving in on the Queen Empusa. There WAS a plan Sol would have liked to have used which involved doing what he did before and eventually getting behind it. However, there were two problems with that plan. The first was simply that Sol simply couldn't easily get on either side of the Queen Empusa. The other was…

"Fuck… gah!"

Was the fact that the Queen Empusa backhanded the man into the wall as he attempted to move around it. Its victory was somewhat short-lived as Sol began to rapidly cut and hack at the limb that pinned him to the wall. Several deep scoring cuts later the Queen Empusa threw the man to the ground in a rage before leaping again and aiming downward. Sol managed to just barely get out of the landing zone in time, however the damage was clear. His breastplate had a clear indentation just beneath the sternum and the back of his left greave was shredded from flying debris.

"Ah… hope… that bitch is dead… feels like my chest is on fire!" Sol gasped out.

The Queen Empusa was very much NOT dead. On the other hand, the crater where she had landed groaned and creaked, then fell from under her, bringing her and everything around her down one floor, completely covering it in rubble and rocks.

"Are you still alive?" Alex's voice was pretty worried, but, if Sol answered, he didn't have the chance to hear it, as the Queen roared from the floor down. But only the upper part of her body was visible and one blade was snapped in half.

"Get the hint you mantis bitch." Sol groaned before firing at the Queen Empusa's head. The rounds bothered it but didn't do much else beyond that.

She roared again and started struggling, the amount of stone over her slowing her down significantly, but she was clearly managing to escape.

"Damn it." Alex bit out, before charging a shot and hitting her right in the head. "Spear her, I'll support you from above!"

"Ye… Yeah!" he called back before staggering forward. As the queen Empusa was distracted he raised his sword high and drove it deep into the demon's leg. The blade pierced the chitin and sank into the floor below. He barely got his arms up in time to block its backswing. He could feel the blow reverberate through his arms as he skidded backward.

The Queen Empusa tried to move, but it couldn't move from where it was.

"Alex! Finish her!" Sol yelled out.

Another charged shot landed on her head, stunning her for a moment, before Alex jumped down, landing on her back, sword already drawn and swinging. The blade bit into the neck of the demon, before stopping after a couple of inches or so.

"Why! Won't! You! DIE?!" He shouted, letting go of the sheath and grabbing the sword with both hands, struggling to push it forward.

The Queen Empusa tried to shirk the human off of herself before she felt something slam into her rear. Sol had come up behind her with a trash can and began to use it as a blunt weapon against the demon.

In the end, it took them almost fifteen seconds to kill her completely. An eternity during a fight, but it was what was needed as the Queen Empusa was just too durable.

Finally, her head went flying upwards and she disappeared in a flash of red orbs, throwing crimson light all around them. Alex leaned on his sword, panting heavily. "Damn, she was harder than I thought."

"I think… I think you're right. I do need better armor." Sol wheezed out before shakily wrenching his sword out of the ground. He made his way up to the second, clutching his chest.

Meeting up with Alex he simply stated, "Let's find Rodin, feels like someone is driving a weight into my chest."

"Probably the fact that a piece of metal is pressing where your lungs are!" Alex almost shouted, before moving towards him and starting to try and take out the armor. "How the fuck do you remove this anachronistic thing? WHY did you choose this anachronistic thing? Right, you didn't choose it, the Statue did. Help me get you out of this place before you choke." His hands were fluttering around the sides and the back, trying to understand how to remove it.

Sol hands moved up to his shoulders and loosened the straps. The breastplate seemed to ease up on his chest and his breathing began to ease.

"Hah… ah… that's better. You think that Rodin has a spot near the statue?" He asked slowly.

"I REALLY hope so." Alex was still breathing a bit in anxiety but was calming down. He grabbed the breastplate and brought it away from Sol. "Look, I understand you like this style of armor. But… honestly, it's not practical for this. Most demons are very agile and those that aren't, are more than strong enough to crush you to paste, armor or no armor. Please, ask Rodin for something that you can use and stay safe?"

Alex was outright pleading with him.

"Yeah, you're right… Just kinda wanted to look like a hero from an old legend, you know? It was stupid of me." Sol shakily got up and pulled out the Geryon Horn. "Okay, let's see if Rodin has something better, maybe I could do something with this."

"Yeah, that would be cool." Alex was slowly calming down before he returned his attention to the Gamestop. "So, the kids told us that the statue was inside here, but we haven't seen it. Considering we haven't checked the entire place, but just the first row of shelves and then the backroom, I'm going to hazard a guess that it's in the part we haven't checked yet."

That said, he started walking towards the place where the counter was.

"Maybe there's an office in the back that we didn't see?" Sol asked.

"I honestly don't know. Unless the door behind… Oh." Alex stopped and pointed at a door, nestled perfectly between two shelves, near two cardboard cutouts, one of Link and the other of Mewtwo, both proclaiming the new Smash Bros game. It was almost unnoticeable at first glance.

"Well, we've found a door. It's something." Alex shrugged, before going around the counter. "I'm gonna see if they have the keys for the backroom so that we can rob the consoles… Aaaand I found the entrance to the Gates of Hell. It's in the next shelving aisle"

He twisted his head back to look at Sol, a single eyebrow raised. "Way in the back. How's that for ironic?"

"Hahahaha" Sol begins to laugh before continuing, "Ah retail, how I don't miss that hellish existence."

"See you inside?" Sol asked before stepping through.

Alex nodded and followed him, stepping into the ominous red circle on the ground.

**********************************************

Sol found himself standing in the familiar bar run by a certain Fallen Angel. Said fallen angel was quietly polishing a glass. Sol looked at Alex, nodded and approached the bar.

"Hello Sir, I was wondering if you could do anything with these two items." He said while placing the Geryon horn on the bar but making sure to keep the Nidhogg limb off.

"I don't want to stain the bar, and I need to make my sword and armor stronger."

"You call that tin can armor?" That was what Rodin opened with, putting away his glass and giving a long, judging look at the armor that was still on Sol. "Kid, if you want to die, you could have just asked. I would have made it easier than letting a demon kill you, you know?"

Alex appeared from behind Sol, his eyes rolling upwards. "Yeah, I told him the same thing. Apparently, it was for the…" There, he stopped and made air quotes with his fingers. "'Aesthetics'."

Rodin looked at Alex. And then stopped. "Kid. Kid. What the fuck did you do?" His tone of voice was even flatter than it was with Sol. "No, seriously. What did you do."

Alex blushed and looked to the side, not answering.

"That was mostly my fault." Sol cut in quickly. "We encountered a.. a Geryon. We managed to bring it down, but my blade didn't cut deep enough. I turn around one moment, and the next thing I know it's goring Alex here before dropping dead on top of him. Managed to somehow connect Alex to a Divinity Statue with myself acting as a bridge between the two."

Sol was deathly quiet for a moment before continuing. "He was dying, and the option to save was some form of hybridization process the statue offered. It used up just about all the bones of that fucking horse, save the horn there to get Alex back up on his feet. I should have checked that damn kill."

Rodin's eyes were wide open. "Wait, did you say bones?"

However Alex was already rolling his eyes. "Yes, I've already forgiven you, seeing as you have also saved my life. He's just a martyr, really. I'm fine." He opened his arms and did a twirl on himself. "See?"

Except that he didn't stop when he would need to. Instead, he kept going for around a quarter of a turn, before falling down like a puppet with their strings cut.

"Alex! You all right!?" Sol asked, shocked.

"No, he isn't alright. He imperfectly fused demon flesh into his body. What did you think would happen? That'd he just walk it off? The two parts of his body are fighting each other. May not seem like much now, but it'll get worse over time." Rodin answered grimly.

He took two fast steps from behind the counter and kneeled near the guy on the ground, before pressing a hand against his right side. That made Alex scream like he was being tortured until he removed it from his side.

"Yeah, this is bad." Rodin's expression looked grim. "His liver has already started to break down. Soon it will be his kidneys, then lungs, then heart."

"Wha… what can we do?" Sol asked, horrified.

"Unless you have some more Geryon bones in hand, not much. There are three options right now." Rodin looked very serious, his eyes pinning Sol in place like a spear in the gut.

"Option one: use a lot of restoratives to keep him alive. Option two: find a compatible demon and take the liver to replace his own. Option three…" And he turned his head towards the wall of weapons behind the bar.

"What's option three?" Sol asked while following Rodin's gaze. Could it be something to do with Devil Arms? Dammit! Why did this have to happen!?

Rodin gave Sol a pitying look, before jerking his thumb towards the weapons on the wall again. Specifically, on Vendetta. An Executioner sword. "Do the math."

"No, no fucking way. We got pulled into this game of death together, we'll get out of this game of death together." Sol shot back, venom clear in his voice. "You mentioned finding a compatible demon right? Where can we go for that? What would even count?" He asked, his voice getting more heated as he went.

"I can't do this alone dammit, and he isn't going to die like this. If that stuttering deadbeat Agnus could make a geriatric priest Nero's equal in combat, then why the hell can't I figure out a way!?" Sol's mind raged.

Rodin looked at Sol for another long moment, before nodding. "I can respect that." He got back behind the counter and grabbed something gold from under the bar, before tossing it to the distraught guy.

It was a small gold CD. "Play that and a lot of demons will come to attack you. There should be at least a couple good enough for your friend there. Oh, and here." The second thing that he tossed was a green lollipop shaped like a leaf.

"A witch friend of mine gave me a couple. It will keep him healthy enough to fight and recover."

Sol held the disc almost reverently before putting it away and saying. "Thank you… I have… I have some things I want to upgrade. I know my aesthetics are stupid, but I want that horn to be a part of the armor, a lasting revenge, and these," He said while holding the finis sword and Nidhogg tentacle.

"I don't think I'll be able to do this with my current arms and armor." Sol said carefully.

"Just before coming here, we fought off a Queen Empusa," He began gesturing to his sword and then to his armor. "The sword did cut through her… body I guess, but not nearly as well as it did on the lesser ones, and one good backhand dented the armor into my chest. I can't take that risk like that. With these pieces, could you do anything about that?" Sol asked Rodin.

Rodin hummed for a moment, grabbing the stinger of Nidhogg and the piece of Geryon horn. "I might. It will cost you, but I might be able to do something. Be warned, unless you bring me some better armor, it won't be as strong as it should be. Basic materials like these…" He rapped on the steel with his knuckles, making the metal ring. "Aren't really good enough to work against demons. Sure, the Watcher of Time gave them to you, which means that they are slightly better, but still not much against demons."

He turned the materials in his hands. "I can either make something that will give you more time to dodge or something that will absorb some of the strength from any hit that comes your way. You choose. Both cases, it will cost you a pretty penny."

Sol thought about it briefly weighing the idea of wearing armor made from a demon horn or the flesh of a demonic tree parasite. In combination with general disgust at the idea of any part of Nidhogg being worn and the idea of increased dodge time like a certain witch, he went with the only sane option.

Taking off the pieces of his armor, Sol stated "I'll have the horn mixed with the armor and the Nidhogg piece with the sword. You mentioned stealing strength, but I'd rather do that actively than reflexively."

"Yeah, good choice there." Rodin nodded, before grabbing the materials. "Gonna need the rest of your armor. Strip."

Alex chuckled at that, low and more relaxed than before, the green lollipop hanging from his lips, his complexion already looking much, much better.

"Oh, to hear those words directed at me…" Rodin looked at Alex, before smirking and winking. "Yeah, you're too weak now. Maybe when you're a bit more grown up we can see. The armor." He turned back towards Sol and snapped his fingers.

Sol dutifully took the armor pieces, leaving him only in a gambeson and associated pants.

"I feel like I'm just wearing a set of long johns here. Definitely, not the right look for this place." He grumbled out before placing the remaining pieces and sword on the bar.

"It will take me a bit of time to complete this work. Go to the Watcher of Time and get a few more clothes." A red, glowing circle appeared behind him, Rodin slowly floating upwards. "Consider that it will come to around 50 thousand Red Orbs."

After he had said that, he disappeared.

"That's… that's fine," Sol said with a shaky sort of confidence that seemed to crack at every word, before looking at Alex. "I'll be right back man, take note of anything you're feeling. Doesn't matter how little it seems, I don't know how much time we have and my luck has always been something of a serious coin toss." He finished before leaving the Gates of Hell

*********************

When Sol found himself back in the Gamestop, he did not hesitate to get to and reach out to the statue.

"50K for better gear, meaning I've got 24K+ to work with. Less when I buy new clothes. The gambeson and pants combo wasn't all that great without the armor, he missed having shoes immensely.

When the statue and the void manifested he made his options quickly. 1 Set of sturdy clothes (-200) another Large Vitality Star (-1500) and… if was getting new weapons and armor, then it would be best to save until he paid all his dues and then saw what abilities he could get with his remaining funds. He watched his wallet drop 1,700 points and felt the gambeson combo change. The resulting outfit wasn't nearly as detailed as Alex's. It was a simple black leather jacket, grey shirt, and black jeans. Shoes-wise, it was a simple pair of dark hiking boots.

"Thank you very much, I'd stick around longer but I have a friend to save," Sol said before reality clicked back and he made his way down to the Gates of Hell.

*********************

When he came back, Alex was sitting on a chair in front of the bar counter, sipping on something that was glowing a deep purple, with streaks of red, as well as having a cheery neon orange afterglow.

"I have no idea what this is." Alex proclaimed, pointing at the glass. "But it's sweet, mildly alcoholic, and very, very good."

Then, he hiccuped, a faint trail of red smoke coming out of his mouth. "Also, it makes you blow smoke when you hiccup."

"His liver is breaking down and he's drinking… suppose I would too if I were in that position." Sol thought before talking to Alex. "How are you feeling and is Rodin back yet?"

Alex smiled sadly. "Better. That lollipop was really magical. And he went to see if he had a few more, but he should be back about.." A red circle appeared behind the bar counter and Rodin manifested from it.

"Ah, you're back. And mildly better dressed than before." Rodin nodded, before taking out two packages. One was long and thin, while the other was more bulky. He put them down in front of Sol.

"Fifty Thousand Red Orbs. Cash on delivery." He smirked at him, while Alex was sipping his cocktail with false poise.

Sol gave out the required red orbs and watched his internal wallet drop to 22,600 before looking at the arm and armor. The armor was what drew his eye first. It had been altered so much to the point that Sol was sure that he could wear over the clothes he currently had on. The armor had been separated into six larger pieces. For arm protection, the gauntlets, bicep armor, and pauldrons had been made into one segmented piece that was further slimmed down for ease of movement, almost like manicae. The leg armor had received a similar alteration and seemed to end just halfway over his boots. The chest piece had been redesigned, so that even though it looked thicker, it felt much lighter than before. There were other, more important changes though. The helmet, while still retaining its general look, now bore two sweeping horns that more than likely sprouted from just behind where his ears would be. Furthermore, gone was the bright shine of man-made steel, as the metal had taken on a deep azure hue, which uncomfortably reminded Sol of the same colors the Deep Geryon had sported. The fluted nature of the armor had become more organic, almost mimicking the look of the demon's scaled skin. All in all, if someone else had told Sol that this was his old armor, he'd have been hard-pressed to believe them.

The sword then caught his eyes. Where once a fleshy stinger and simple demonic blade lay, there was a sword made of sharpened bone. Taking it in his hand, Sol stepped back several paces and gave a swing. It felt… right somehow and there was something else, a feeling he got while holding the blade. Acting on it, with a simple thought, the blade segmented and revealed itself and assumed a whip-like form.

He was reminded of a movie he had seen many years ago and the accompanying legend it was based on.

"Gevaudan, I'll call you Gevaudan, after the beast that roamed that region of France… And you," He said addressing the armor, "will be called Geryon B." He zipped up his jacket before methodically donning the armor.

"Okay Rodin, I think I'm ready for that CD. That drink you gave Alex, is that to numb the pain?" He asked.

"Mild restorative. Virgin, don't worry." Rodin waved away Sol's worries, before taking out a small CD case. "Here you go. Play that CD when you want to start the gauntlet. I suggest using a wide open space." He gave both of them a long look.

"And to get some more Red Orbs. You'll need it." Which, fair.

Alex nodded and downed the rest of his cocktail, before getting up. He was much better than before, at least at a first glance. "Thank you Rodin."

"Eh, think nothing of it. Here." And he dropped two more lollipops in his hands. "The only ones that I still had. Be careful and come back once you have the money and the materials, ok? I'm always interested in trying to make new things. Or if you want something from there." And he pointed at the weapons on the wall.

Alex nodded, smiling. "I absolutely will. Thank you very much."

"Again, thank you Rodin." Sol responded before looking at Vendetta hanging on the wall. "One day I'll buy that sword, sir. But today is sadly not that day." He finished before taking the CD in two fingers and walking to the Gates of Hell entrance. Thinking back, he thought he saw something like a player in the back room with the statue, maybe he could use that for the gauntlet.

"Ok, so…" Alex started, before dithering a bit. He looked like he was collecting his thoughts.

"First of all: I want to go and use the Divinity Statue. I don't have a lot of Orbs, but I want to advance my magic and maybe get another technique or empower Calcabrina or something. Also, I want to get a bit better. Second, we need to walk about… what to do. For… You know, the Liver. How do we… Do you know how… Can we…" He seemed to get frustrated, clearly unsure on what to say. Or how to say it.

Finally, after he had stopped and taken a long, deep breath, he turned fully towards Sol with uncharacteristic seriousness. "How the fuck do we get a liver from a demon? Do you even know how or where they have one? If they have one?"

Sol paused mid-step to the back office door before turning around. "I guess we cut them out, or drag whole bodies to Rodin. I don't know about you, but I'm not a surgeon and I'm terrified that I'd screw that up. So... yeah, hit up the statue. I'll try to find something to play the CD and then…" He trailed off thinking. "Then we'll just need to find a place big enough to attract demons."

"Yeah, sure. Just another Tuesday." Alex commented, before reaching for the statue.

He stopped a moment before making contact. "We need to alert the kids. About what we are going to do. Or, well. That there will be a massive demon attack, at least." Alex commented, lowly, before finally touching the statue.

The white-gold space greeted him. The Watcher of Time was right in front of him, motionless.

"Thank you for your help. With the…" Alex waved his hand in a meaningless pattern, talking about the hybridization. Then, he just went and looked for what he could buy.

He had exactly 14.800 Red Orbs, and there were a lot of options he could choose from. More spells, like beams and aiming spears or creating constructs. More normal techniques. Enhancements. Weapon specific powers, like in the games. Even powers tied to his new hybrid status, powers that messed with times. Sadly, they were more costly than the others and… If Alex was going to be honest with himself, he didn't have the energy to use them well.

Basics. He needed more of the basics. Walking before running.

So, he went for something very simple.

Air Hike, like Sol. Because double jumping was pretty neat. And useful.

Basic Enhancement (Mystical), to empower his magical energy and, probably, reserves. It was under the physical version and he had seen it, but he had chosen to not take it before, considering that he wasn't completely stupid. Or obsessed.

Well, no, he was, but he was also smart enough to understand that he would need the physical abilities to remain alive to be able to use magic. So, that was the second thing he bought.

Finally, with almost all that remained in his wallet, he bought the Trigger Heart ability. That would pay more in the long run than instantly, but being able to use more energy to achieve the same effect was a godsend.

Divinity-sent? Watchersent?

Eh, the terminology didn't really matter right now.

With a sigh, he exited from the Statue's space and turned towards Sol. "Ok, go and find a CD player. If they still exist in that format, anyway."

"Already did," Sol said, placing an older CD boombox on the counter. "Now, I'll probably use the statue to see what abilities I can get with these," He said gesturing to his armor and sword, "we'll warn the other survivors, and then find a spot. How are you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm feeling…" Alex seemed to check himself for a moment, before nodding slowly. "I don't feel feverish or tired or anything like that. No pain anywhere, not even discomfort. I'm feeling well, all said. I don't know for how long that will last, of course, but… we'll see. We're trying to resolve this situation, after all, aren't we?" He smiled, trying to be sure of himself, at Sol.

"Yeah," Sol simply responded before touching the statue. In the void he called up the menu options for abilities and noticed two new options.

"Gevaudan and Geryon B, what do you too have to offer."

Looking at Geryon B, he noticed only one option was available, "Time Step, huh? That second or two may save my life… fuck it, I've got a feeling I can make 10K back easily enough." He looked at the options for Gevaudan and gaped at the options. Fretting over them slightly, he made two purchases. Something called Rush Cut for the sword state, and Dragline for the whip state. He watched the Red Orb count drop down to 2,260.

"Thank you," he said to the statue before knowledge filled his mind and the world reset.

Looking at Alex as he came back, he stated "I think I have my first set of true moves."

Alex's eyes widened for a moment before he smiled and gave him a thumb's up. "Congrats. Can't wait to see them in action. This said, where do we go?" He gestured at the CD. "I can't remember any wide open spaces around here and I don't think that fighting inside the mall is going to be a good idea. Also, there are the Kids to deal with."

"Yeah we'll let them know what we're planning, say that we're doing it to clear the area before deeper sweep and clears, then head outside? That front entrance place could be a good spot, relatively open and we could funnel any demons into a choke point."

"Can't demons just use those portals? How about the parking lot? It's wide, it's probably empty and it's pretty scenographic?" Alex suggested, clearly trying to think of a good place. "Otherwise… Maybe the roof? But there's the chance of falling down. Nothing underground… There's the center of the mall, but, again, it's not really open, per se."

Sol rubbed his chin in thought, "Parking lot would be best, You could probably post up somewhere high and rain death on whatever is attracted by the music while I deal with ground stuff. That will work." Sol said before grabbing the boombox and making his way out of the store.

Alex sighed and shook his head, before following him. "We need to alert the Kids before we do that. I don't want them getting in the middle of the situation without knowledge in some misguided attempt at trying to help or.."

He stopped talking when, after turning a little following the bend of the hallway, he stopped because there were several teenagers guided by a single adult coming their way. They stopped as well, with the teacher - presumably Phys Ed, if the way he was dressed was any indication - holding a metal bar and glaring at Alex and Sol.

"Hi there, how are you doing?" Sol asked in a friendly enough tone while slowly setting down the boombox, shifting it out of the way, and keeping his arms to his side.

Alex didn't facepalm at Sol, but it was a near thing. He just… stood there, waiting to see what would happen.

The teacher glared - again - at both of them, before he raised the metal bar he had in his hands and pointed it at Sol. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

At a cursory glance, they couldn't see either Kurt or Prep Boy with them. Which was… strange.

"Trying to survive just like you," Sol said easily before narrowing his eyes, seemingly catching onto what Alex had noticed. "Where's Kurt, and the other guy." He asked slowly.

"Why do you care? How do you know the name of one of my students?" The teacher asked, rather forcefully, before one of the girls pushed her way up to him.

"Prof! That guy is the one that saved you!" Her blonde hair was matted with sweat and blood, but she was otherwise pretty unharmed. Still, at her shout, everyone stopped and started to stare at Sol and Alex. The teacher lowered his 'weapon' and glared at Sol.

Then, he looked down at the girl and then back at Sol. "What kind of wound did I have?"

"Your femoral artery was sliced open, and you'd have died of blood loss if we didn't step in. Now why don't you answer my question, what happened to Kurt and the other guy?" Sol asked again, a slight edge to his voice.

The teacher seemed to calm down slightly. "Nothing. They are back at the restaurant to keep guard in case something happens. With forty kids, bringing all of them out was too dangerous. You were the one who told them about the statue, right? Well, we are going to see if we can find it and see if there is a way for us to go back home."

Sol gave a sigh of relief before glancing at Alex. "It's in the back office of Gamestop. Now that you're here, we're going to be clearing a path by playing bait so to speak, so whenever you're done in there let us know and hold up somewhere. You'll be safer that way. Anything you want to add man?" Sol asked Alex.

"I don't know if they have already told you, but anything marked with an L in parenthesis…" He made two lines in the air with his finger. "Are not to be trusted. Be careful walking around because the demons can appear at any moment. Normal materials are useless to defend yourself. And… Try to stay alive, but don't leave people behind to save yourself. It will never end well." After that, he nodded and kept walking forward.

Sol was quick to follow after Alex and made sure to watch the group carefully. It wasn't that he thought them evil or anything but they were a group of people who were scared and in a place that really was hell. Humans being human could be both a good and bad thing depending on what went on in their heads.

Stepping in line with Alex, Sol stated quietly, "That could have gone worse. How long do you think they'll be?" He asked, a hint of impatience in his voice.

"No idea." Alex wasn't running or even power walking. He was just… walking with a little bit of speed to it. Completely natural.

"No idea, but I hope it won't attract too much attention. On the other hand, maybe our little music show will be enough to keep them safe, for now." Alex continued as he shrugged.

"Maybe," Sol said in response. He was quiet for a while, before passing a window overlooking the parking lot. As he looked out onto it, he noted that while it was both open and intact, there were enough busted and smashed cars to make a good post-apocalyptic movie.

"Well, I guess the parking lot looks clear enough."

"It does, true." Alex nodded, before looking around once more. "On the other hand, who destroyed these cars?" He gestured at the various wrecked ones. "Also, do you think there's something secret in the underground parking lot? Should we check that one before?"

"Let's get you those body parts first. I'd rather fight out in the open in the light of day and get you at 100% than encounter something we've never seen before in the dark. There might be lights on in here, but what about the below? I'd rather make sure we're good up here before heading further down."

"True, true." Alex nodded, before pointing at the corner of the parking lot farther from the Mall proper. "That point looks good to you? Mostly, because it's far enough that there shouldn't be any risk of us ending near the mall itself."

"Yeah, we'll be far enough so as to get a good sight line of the surrounding area and we can easily move beyond the parking lot if need be." Sol looked around further, moving behind Alex and glancing over the railing. "And the exit is right below us. Are you up for this?" He asked in a more serious tone.

"Don't really have another choice, do I? I mean, we're either doing this or we hope to find the right demon roaming around. It's not like we have more choices. And I don't fancy dying a long, slow death while my body destroys itself from the inside." Alex shuddered at his own words, before taking a deep breath. "Also, Red Orbs. Those are always a good thing to have. And we're going to need them. A lot."

Then, he nodded at Sol. "Hit it."

Sol nodded, took the boombox, and walked down and out of the mall to the side corner of the parking lot making sure Alex was close enough to be a part of the battle but far enough to not take a hit. He looked around and saw an overturned car with the windows blown out. He kneeled to the ground, inserted the CD into the boom box, slid it into the upturned car, and pressed play.

As the song began to play, he looked to Alex, drew his gun and sword, and waited for the party to arrive.

"Not exactly what I was expecting, but it's nice," Sol said after a few moments.

"Yeah, same," Alex smirked, before pointing at the various portals that were opening in front of them. "Look, we have company."

From the opening in the fabric of reality, several of the demonic ants fell, some gracefully, some… less. Those that managed to not fall were those that were able to fly.

Empusa. Red and Green variety. Alex cracked his knuckles, before pointing Calcabrina towards one of the green flying ones. "Let's dance."

A charged bullet slammed against that one before the demons shrieked and started attacking, shambling toward Alex and Sol.

Sol twisted Gevaudan in his hand, the blade segmented and he lunged forward. Gevaudan sang through the air as he slashed through the Empusa that began to congregate. The linked parts sliced through some of the Empusa with ease and Sol swore he felt better with each out slice.

"Come on you bugs! Time to get stomped!" Sol roared to the horde.

Alex didn't say anything else, he just started shooting from a distance, bolt after bolt raining on the Green Empusa. Keeping them from reaching the needy ones, keeping them too high, and in some cases, pushing them back when they were starting to get too close to Sol.

A couple of charged shots managed to land on some of the Red Empusas that were attempting to swarm Sol, giving him as much help as he could.

Sol realized what Alex was doing and began to aim Gevaudan lower on the Empusa. The bone whip sliced through the limbs of the demons, dropping them forward as they fell mid-step.

"Alex! Finish them off, take as many red orbs as you need!" Sol called out as he crippled more and more Empusa.

With a roll of his eyes, Alex jumped forward, the blade coming out of its sheath, a charged bolt shining on the tip of the umbrella. And then, he started slicing and exploding the demons. He felt way lighter than he should have been, especially considering that he was 5'9'' and looked like a swimmer. The second thing because of the Statue, but it wasn't the point.

The point was, that for his height and build, how he was moving wasn't very realistic. At least, not without some serious commitment to learning how to fight.

Once all the demons were dead and he was being showered in red, he blinked, puzzled. "I'm…." Turning towards Sol, he closed Calcabrina, trying to put into words his thoughts. "I'm not sure, but… Aren't I a bit too good at fighting? For what I've done, anyway?"

Sol breathed in and out evenly before smiling "A few hours ago, I'd never been able to do any of this. Maybe every time we're not just physical boosts but also the potential for battle? Don't knock it man, just be glad we can fight."

The track was still playing and Sol scanned the horizon for any additional demons. Nothing so far, but that didn't mean much.

Alex nodded, slowly, before he whipped his head to the side, along Sol. From a bigger portal, a white figure started to descend. It was white. Shining white, really with a shield that looked like two wings closed together and a spear in his other hand.

"What are those doing here?" Alex hissed, his knuckles going white on the grip of Calcabrina, the blade already naked and the umbrella open, ready to be used as a shield.

"Well shit, if it isn't one of Agnus' tin soldiers…" Sol said with a grimace before stopping short. He looked to Alex and then at the Angelo copy. "Hey Alex, I think we found your organ donor."

"A nice sacrifice on his part. Also, he has nice armor. Could be used for your own, to reinforce it a bit. I would like to avoid you getting skewered by an errant lance, you know." Alex nodded, shallowly, before showing his teeth in what someone could have called a smile if they were completely ignorant of social convention.

"Well? What are we waiting for?" The Bianco Angelo moved forward, aiming at Sol, his spear already extended and whirring. Alex was between Sol and the demon at the same moment, the spear hitting the umbrella and stopping. Sure, the magical shield shattered like glass from the hit, but the Bianco Angelo had been stopped.

So, Alex planted the blade straight into the eye-opening of the demon, eyes blazing indigo and gray and purple. "Boom."

A charged bolt sent the demon flying back, smoke coming out of the helmet.

The demon stepped back as the smoke began to dissipate. It raised its weapon briefly before Sol attacked the limb. As he did, he let out the second of the two moves he bought from the statue. Rush Cut sent him arching forward, his blade making a deep gouge in the demon's pseudo-armored arm. The limb lost its grip on the lance and hung limply at the demon's side.

"Now Alex! Finish Him!" Sol shouted above the music and clattering of the lance.

"Eh, sure. Let's see…" He shot forward, booted feet hitting the concrete of the parking lot, before jumping forward. Near the Bianco Angelo's shield. Only for the air under his feet to crystallize in a platform, allowing him to jump once again, somersaulting above the demon and impaling him on the back of the neck, thanks to the fact that Sol was keeping him mostly still.

The sword - Brina - remained embedded there, before Alex finished his jump and landed behind the Bianco Angelo, with the tip of his umbrella - Calca - resting on the upper left side of the Bianco Angelo's back.

"Kaboom."

Another charged bullet ripped through the already weakened armor, blasting the body underneath apart.

While the music was coming to a close, the demon fell on the ground in front of the two, leaving several Red Orbs behind.

"They're all yours man. You need them more now than I do." Sol said while grabbing the boombox and turning it off. As he looked back at the spectacle, he noticed that the Angelo body, while still relatively intact, was simmering along the edges.

"Oh, we have to get that back to the statue, prompto. You need that liver, and whatever else is in Agnus' tin soldier as soon as possible." Sol said while hefting the demon's body on his shoulder.

"True, true." Alex nodded, the motion looking a little bit hysterical before he went to the other side of the demon and grabbed the other shoulder. Acting together, the two of them moved the rather heavy demon and started walking back towards the Mall.

"Let's hope that it's ok. Also, I don't think I'm going to need the armor, so… do you want it? Maybe you can ask Rodin to add it to your own, to make it stronger or something." Shaking his head to move his ponytail away from his neck, Alex looked towards Sol, waiting for his answer.

"Maybe, but you could probably use it better than me…" Sol said as he moved towards the entrance. "We need you to get you at 100%, or a true 50% before we do anything else. Come on, let's go."

Entering back into the mall, there was a sense of unease that hung in the air. Something in the air was charged and…

*Bang! Bang!*

Two gunshots rang out in the mall. Sol looked back to Alex, and mouthed the question, "Kurt?"

"I don't remember him having a gun." Alex answered, slowly and with a low voice, eyes wide, before another gunshot could be heard from the inside of the mall.

"Fuck it." Both of them nodded and started running towards the door. It was open, so they didn't need to use the still-decaying corpse of the Bianco Angelo as a shield when they entered. Still, they stopped.

There was a man in a suit, with a rather large gun in his hands. A strange gun, that was almost organic looking, at least at first glance. His eyes were shining a faint black, there were smudges of blood on his clothes and a group of kids were cowering in front of him, while he was ranting at them.

The weapons that Sol had left were in front of them. In pieces.

"Now why don't you tell me where the rest of you had been hiding! We never saw you at the beginning! So how the hell are you here!? This is our moment! Our power! Now just answer the question and…" he was cut off by a bullet striking his head. The impact had dazed him briefly, but the bullet itself didn't penetrate deeply, instead leaving a nasty cut above his eye.

Sol stood there gun out, barrel smoking, and quietly stated "Back away from the kids, shit for brains, they're in the same boat as us and those red-eyed assholes."

The man turned and looked at the two. His eyes widened briefly before a cruel almost inhuman smirk danced across his face.

"You! I remember you two from before. Thought you could slink around our backs like scavengers! You should have joined when you had the chance!" His voice boomed out as he laughed. His dark eyes seemed to focus on Alex briefly, taking in his alterations, his face took on a grim, leering smile.

"You seemed to have joined the winning team, didn't you? It feels good, yeah? All that power. Hahahahaha! Ah… Bet you're just full of it now, aren't you!? That power… yeah, I think I'll take it from you and all those fancy toys while I'm at it!"

Alex blinked, before letting the corpse of the Bianco Angelo fall on the ground with a loud, metallic thud. "You?"

His voice was a whisper when compared to the businessman, but all the more dangerous for it. At that exact moment, Alex sounded like the end of times, like the last words that someone would ever utter before time passed over them and reduced them to dust.

"You think you are strong enough to defeat me? Or even him?" He gestured towards Sol, head slightly cocked to the side, before starting to walk forward, Calcabrina scraping the metal tip of the umbrella - the sword was still in the sheath, unseen - against the floor. "You, that only reached this place thanks to borrowed power. You, who advanced without worry or fear. You worked in a group, which is admirable, only to devolve into… what? What even are you, now?"

Sol scooped up the body and looked between the two before handing Alex an object. "I see you want this one… take the vitality star for afterward. I'll preserve the body as best I can."

Sol hefted the body on his shoulder before looking back. "Kick his ass brother." before leaving deeper into the mall.

***********************

Sol ran to the statue quickly. He could feel the heat from the Bianco Angelo slowly dissipating body on his shoulder.

Bursting into the back room, Sol touched the statue, and feeling the white void replace his vision, he banished the menus and stared at the Bianco Angelo. The shimmering effect had faded, slowed even, but was still present.

"Okay, Alex, it's all on you. Survive this one man" Sol wished he had a watch to count the time better, but without it, he slowly began to count aloud…

***********************

The businessman cackled "Better than you or your fleeing friend! Now come on!" he roared as he raised his demon gun.

Alex raised a single eyebrow, his face would have been in the dictionary, as the definition of 'unimpressed'.

"I'm sorry, should I be worried? I mean, I understand that you must be driven to compensate for your… lackluster capacity…" Alex's eyes darted downward, to look at his opponent's crotch, before returning to his face. "But really. A gun of that size is just impractical. At least if it's not a shotgun or a rifle."

The man turned steaming red, before aiming and shooting at Alex. Without a care in the world, he opened Calcabrina and let the bullets hit the canopy of the umbrella, without any kind of effect.

"Yup. Deluding. But, I guess you are accustomed to hearing it, aren't you?" Alex's smiling - smirking, really - face appeared from above the edge of the umbrella for a moment, before hiding again when the gunshot another time.

"Stop hiding behind that umbrella and let me kill you!" The businessman roared and fired another blast from his gun. The blast seemed to streak with a dark light, and though it hit, the impact was enough of a tell to state that the gun, its effects, and its power were far more bark than bite.
The businessman roared again, "Just DIE!"

Alex smiled from behind his cover, his thoughts running. The man in front of him was, honestly, pathetic: that gun had pitiful power, he hadn't even tried to move from his position and seemed to not even know what to do when someone didn't automatically fall for his violence.

He half turned the handle of Brina, before stopping and starting to charge a bullet in the palm of his hand. After a moment, it was good enough.

"You call that a shot? Please." Alex's voice echoed in the room before he popped up and let his own bullet fly toward the man. Well, to be more specific, in front of him.

The plan was very simple: let the charged bullet hit the ground, raise a cloud of dust, and use the cover to advance. It should work.

The charge shot struck the ground, sending tiles and dust in the air. The businessman began to cough and try to clear the dust and debris from his vision.

"Just like before, you two were hiding in the background while we fought, you cowards! This gun will bring me victory!" He shouted in fury. Blinded and raving in the confusion, the demonic businessman fired several stray shots around himself in an attempt to hit Alex. None of the shots, thankfully, hit their mark.

Alex, finally, acted. The dust cloud was still big enough to hide his movements. Unsheathing Brina, he let the umbrella drop on the ground - the position would make it look like he was hiding, crouching on the ground behind the big umbrella, while he would be anywhere but there.

After that, he darted to the side, running towards the man, blade trailing behind him. The dust cover opened a little, letting the businessman see the umbrella still in front of him. Not Alex to the side.

He shot the umbrella, again, without any effect beyond pushing it upwards in a series of twists, showing that there was nothing under it. Alex jumped forward.

Then jumped once again, from an Air Hike to a somersault, passing right to the side of the man where he was holding his weapon.

Brina flashed upward before Alex twisted and landed on the ground behind the businessman, the blood slowly sliding down from the Devil Arm.

"Any last words?" His tone was flat and icy. The sound of his arm - along with his gun - hitting the ground, separated from his body, was dull, meaty, and loud.

The businessman clutched the stump of his arm, before howling in pain. In between cries of agony, he began to hiss out. "Ha… ah… They'll be coming. They'll wonder what happened to me. I was IMPORTANT!!!" He roared defiantly, turning and attempting to use his remaining hand to grab at Alex.

Alex took a single step back, moved his sword from his right hand to the left, in a reverse grip, and slammed it in his chest, pushing with all of his strength, until the businessman topped backward, the blade pinning him to the ground like a butterfly.

"Nah. You really aren't." Alex raised a single corner of his mouth, before aiming his right hand at the man's head. Magic collected in front of it, before the charged bolt slammed in the horrified face of the man.

Everything that remained was a red splatter on the ground. He removed Brina from the man and, while the corpse exploded into red orbs, he extended his right hand. Calca landed right in it.

"What a fucking nightmare."

Slowly some of the students began to peek out from behind the barricade in front of EAT. There was something in their eyes. A look between gratification, fear, and caution. Some edged forward, Kurt among them. The right side of his face a deep purple and clutched in his hand was the axe blade that had belonged to the hand axe.

"Is… Is he dead?" He asked cautiously.

************************
Sol had given up counting seconds and had instead chosen to cycle through some songs in his, unknowingly singing them aloud as he paced.

"Cause the music plays forever."

The body, while still mostly whole, had lost most of its skull, hands, and feet. The dissipation was still encroaching on the greater whole, but could he risk it? If he left now and Alex was still fighting the other guy, shit.

"I can hear them on a timeless wavelength. Never dissipating."

He looked back to the body, "Come on Alex, give me a sign."

************************

"Fuck." The Red Orbs were a lot. The fact that the gun was still there was a problem. But he also knew that he had to go. And yet, he didn't really want to touch that gun. So, he turned towards Kurt.

The boy was awake and watching, a strange look on his face. When he noticed that Alex was looking at him, however, he flinched back a little.

Alex didn't say or do anything. He just gulped down some air and pointed at the gun. "You take that. Do what you want with it. I need to go or I'm going to end up dead. See you later." And, without any other explanation, he turned and started running as fast as he could.

He jumped over the collapsed section that the Queen Empusa had died in and landed in front of the Gamestop. Not even pausing at the door, he rocketed inside the back room, where the statue was. Sol was there, with what remained of the Bianco Angelo.

From the outside, it was strange to see, as he was almost immobile, and yet still there. He slid the last few steps, before slamming against the Divinity Statue.

White gold light blinded him.

There was a flash of light behind Sol and he turned mid-step and verse.

"I'll ask questions on what happened later, the body is dissipating and I don't know how much of it you need or how much you have left to harvest it."

"Yeah. Yeah, you're right. Shit." Alex grimaced, a hand going to his side and hovering over the area where his liver was. "It's starting to hurt again."

Then, he turned towards the Watcher of Time. "Can I see the hybridization options?"

A screen opened in front of him, giving him what he wanted to know.

"Not this. Not this. Absolutely not this. Ah."

Bianco Angelo Perfect Hybridization (Liver): 25.000 Red Orbs\

"Fuck. 25K Red Orbs." Alex glanced at the counter and blinked. "That guy had more than 10k of Red Orbs with him? He was a wimp."

"How much do you have on you? Do you have enough to do it?" Sol asked with cautious optimism.

"26k. Barely enough." Alex flashed a small smile at Sol, before tapping the option on the screen. Immediately, it vanished, leaving him with only One Thousand Red Orbs. Then, the body of the Bianco Angelo started to… vibrate. So to speak.

The armor split open like an egg before whatever was inside rose, a mass of black, blue, and red… oily smoke - or something that looked a lot like it - and un-spooled like a ball of yarn, entering in his body straight from his right side, where the liver.

It hurt.

It Hurt a lot.

Alex fell on his knees, the space of the Divinity Statue vanishing and leaving him back in the Gamestop, eyes open and glassy, mouth shouting a silent scream of pain, his skin flushed red, as his hands and nails dug in beneath him, almost trying to rip apart the floor.

After thirty more seconds, the whole thing was done, and Alex slumped on the floor, boneless.

Sol moved quickly. Not directly touching Alex, but kneeling by his side, he began to speak, "Just breathe man, just breathe. The pain will probably pass soon. Just… hold on."

"Ghhhh…" Alex was trying to take a deep breath, but the stitch in his side was making it pretty hard, and he was starting to turn a little more blue than a person should ever be…

"Gh- Aahahhhhhhh…" Finally, after a long, long minute, Alex managed to take a deep breath, the burning in his lungs vanishing almost immediately, as air finally filled them. That first breath was followed by a series of short breaths, almost like he was scared that he would lose the ability to breathe once more.

Sol stepped back and gave Alex space as he watched him. He didn't quite know what to do but figured talking may actually be helpful in this situation.

"That's it, just breathe. Let your body do the work and breathe. This will pass, this will pass."

It took Alex a couple more minutes to stop panting like a dog, tears sliding down his face, before he finally stopped and, slowly, rose upwards, using his elbows to push himself into a sitting position.

"I'm... feeling better. Yeah." He nodded, more to himself, before sighing, his shoulders slumped downward.

"I'm feeling better…"

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Whew! This chapter actually wanted to work with me this time around when doing final edits. Nothing really big to talk about for this chapter except for business lackey with the gun. What's the old saying? Was it Absolute Power, Corrupts Absolutely, or was it The Promise of Absolute Power, Corrupts Absolutely... Well, we'll just have to wait and see with that one, won't we?

 

[Atma]

Sol looked at Alex. Several thoughts were running through his mind. Some were along the lines of "If this were to happen to me, would I have to go through the same pain," and "Is part of his hair now blonde?"

It was, Sol realized, as even in the dim light of the back office he could see the difference. He got up and extended a hand towards Alex. "Come on man, let me help you up."

Alex's hand went and grabbed Sol's own, his almost dead weight making him stumble for the barest of moments before he managed to get him up.

"Thanks. I would be dead without you." He was blinking away the remaining tears before he cracked his neck and back.

Then, silence. For a long moment.

"I'm kinda tired, you know?" While his voice was light, his expression was… not. "And there's still some of the Bianco Angelo Armor. How about we take it, go to see Rodin, and see if we can take a nap?"

"That's not a bad idea, keep it and use it for your own needs. You could use it more than me." Sol said before walking back and into the Gates of Hell.

Alex remained there for a moment, looking at Sol's disappearing form. "I… actually meant that you could reinforce your own." He said to the air, before looking down at the hunk of metal. It shone in the light.

"Maybe I can get a reinforced duster or something?" He checked his leather duster, which was… well, made of leather. "You never know."

So, he grabbed the loot and took a step into the magic circle.

*****************************************************

"Mission Accomplished… I hope…" Sol said to Rodin as he entered the bar.

"I'm not really here for anything mind you. Just to make sure Alex is doing alright."

After a few moments, Alex appeared behind Sol with the armor dragging behind him. He looked.. normal. At least, Rodin didn't say anything.

At first.

"Well, you definitely went better than the first time, that's for sure." The bald man grimaced a little, before checking Alex from head to toe once more. "Yeah, you're not going to lose your liver anytime soon. Your kidneys, on the other hand…"

Silence.

"Of course. Because it couldn't be so easy, could it?" Alex wasn't shouting, but almost. He just dragged his hand on his face, moving his glasses to the side. "Do you know how many pieces I need to change before I don't risk killing myself anymore?"

Rodin hummed. "Well, you're not exactly a weapon, but I can hazard a guess."

"Dammit all, we just can't catch a break can we." Sol said bitterly, before tapping his hands against the bar and asking, "What can we do? How much of himself does he have to replace, before this stops being a life-threatening issue?"

"The easy way would still be finding another Geryon and using it. Sad to say, those are pretty rare these days." Rodin started, leaning forward on the bar counter, his hands firmly placed on the surface.

"The second option is to replace enough of your body until you can hybridize properly, instead of just grafting things together. Stay away from the brain and heart. The stomach and intestines are a good starting point. Still, you'll need the kidneys." He frowned, seemingly lost in thought for a moment.

"Your lungs could be substituted, but that's going to be very touch and go, depending on the demon you are using. Humanoid only." He got back, crossing his arms over his chest. "Once you have… Mhhh… Around half of your body is replaced, you can try and see if you can finish the Hybridization process. It's not going to be easy. Some demons aren't compatible with each other, after all."

"Well shit," Sol said briefly before pausing and giving a thoughtful look. "Hold on, the statue offers complete hybridization at 100k. Is it… doing it in partial payments? Like 25k for a liver, 25k for a pair of kidneys, etc… Could that be it?" He asked.

Rodin shook his head. "Nah, kid. The statue offered that because you had the entire corpse to use. The entire piecemeal process, from now to end, will easily run you 300-400 thousand Red Orbs."

"Then we need a complete body then… maybe we'd be lucky… Can we keep that disc you gave us? It's pretty useful all things considered."

"Won't work twice." Rodin shook his head, before explaining. "It's the magical energy inside the disk that makes the demons appear. Without it, it's only music. As for the entire body, sure, you can do that."

Then, he smiled. "On the other hand, if you can find compatible demons, you can try and maximize your gains. Don't you know what they call it now? Min Maxing?"

"Ha, yeah they do. And I've never been a fan of it personally. Too much running of the numbers for my own damn good. I get lost in the minutia… What do you think Alex?" Sol asked.

"I played a fair amount of Dungeons and Dragons, so I'm familiar with the concept. And, honestly, I would prefer it, so that we could correct any possible problem that could appear while we are doing things. If we use a single corpse, there's the chance that something will go bad and I won't have the option to correct it."

"It's your choice. Just try to remain alive, it would suck to lose two new clients." Rodin smiled at the duo, before continuing. "So, why did you come here?"

"To report on a mission accomplished, or that was the plan…" Sol snapped his fingers. "We have some armor pieces from the Bianco Angelo, maybe you could work with Alex and see what you can come up with?"

"I don't think I'm going to want armor like Sol, though. Maybe something with this?" Alex shrugged off the leather duster, letting Rodin examine it.

"Good quality. The Watcher, right?" At his affirmative nod, the bar owner rapped his knuckles on the armor, listening intently. "I can armor it a bit. It's not going to give you anywhere near enough armor to withstand more than a couple of blows, but it can be useful in a pinch."

Alex nodded, before asking the really important question. "How much?"

Rodin checked the armor and the duster once more time, before leaning back. "Five Thousand."

Alex grimaced at that. "I'll have to shelve the option, for now. I'm just at One Thousand."

Sol nodded in response, "We'll come back for those options later on sir." Sol then looked to Alex, "You want to check out the underground parking lot? Maybe find some secrets down there or another way further down?"

"No offense, but I kinda want to sleep. The whole changing your liver like it was a car part hurt like a mother and I'm kinda… mentally tired. Not that much physically, but… yeah." Alex shrugged, before looking at Rodin. "I was hoping we could crash here and nap for a couple of hours?"

"What the hell? I kinda like you two. You can take a rest here for a little while. But don't think this will be a usual thing. I already have to clean up for Enzo from time to time."

"Well" began Sol, "how much for a drink, because I honestly feel like I need one."

"Oh, yeah. That, too. Food, too, if you have it. We're going to pay for the nap, too, I'm not that kind of asshole." Alex piped up, smiling at Rodin, before patting his stomach. "I'm kinda hungry, gotta be honest. Kinda want pizza. But I doubt we're going to be able to order, so…" And he shrugged.

"If that's doable… If not then, I'm a simple guy. I'll take a Gin and Tonic and I will find a chair and rest. If there's clean-up duty needed just say the word and I'll help with it." Sol said while placing his helmet on a table.

"Well, you're already better than Enzo. He still owes me a pretty big debt. Anyway, go sit down and I'll see what I have. Even if it's only a few bar snacks." Rodin walked back towards the backroom and vanished from sight. Alex and Sol, in the meantime, slumped on the comfortable couch near one of the small tables.

"Well, this is going to be a long thing to do," Alex commented, his head bent backward, stretched over the curve of the couch. "Adjusting my body, I mean. Man, I sound like I'm in an RPG game…"

Sol gave Alex an odd look, before laughing. "Shit sounds like we're in the vortex world, and you were the one to have a run-in with Kid-Cipher and his nanny. All we need now is Dante asking which side of a coin toss we want to be on."

Sol sat straighter in the chair. "When you really think about it though, you're not far off. We've got a mysterious force telling us of a great mission, rivals who are turning evil at the drop of a hat, and progression elements. Maybe it's not Final Fantasy or SMT, but it's pretty close all the same. Though to be honest, I'd rather take my chances here than in FF."

"I mean, it depends on which Final Fantasy we're talking about." Alex pointed out, notably not refuting Sol's previous points. "Nine is nice, from a story and world perspective. Eight would be great if we could get our hands on the power of the Sorceress: they're basically demigoddess. Shame that only women can be one. Seven is a death world, but Materia is nice. Ten is… kinda meh, honestly. Never played Eleven, never finished Twelve, but it's nice and Thirteen is a Final Fantasy in name only. Fifteen… Not enough magic for my tastes."

"Slight difference of opinion on that. "Nine is a borderline death world thanks to Kuja and… I really do wonder if it is the same Garland as in One. That's a terrifying thought. You are absolutely on point about Seven. Eight, eh… I'd like to avoid GS amnesia, thank you very much. My friend was a super fan of Ten, though he refuses to discuss Ten-Two in any way. I wouldn't mind being in Twelve. Rabanastre seemed like a cool place to live in if you're able to disregard the occupying Arcadian forces. Again though, you're absolutely right about Thirteen. I couldn't stop making Time Bandits jokes when I first saw Caius Ballad, even though he was the best thing in that particular series. Fifteen… I want Ardyn's car. It looks nice." Sol said before looking to see if Rodin had returned.

"Oh! and Fourteen… I really only know the Nier crossover event and that's enough nightmare fuel to tell me to stay far away. I do not want to live in anything, even touching the Taro Verse." Sol said with a chuckle.

"I played a little. Not much more than a month, tho, for lack of money for the account. Still, it was pretty nice." Alex sighed. "But we are here. And we're going to make the best of what we have. So, we're going to eat something, drink something, nap, and then try to find as many secret areas as we can. We need to buy more of those orbs, both Blue and Purple."

"Too true, you especially. We need to keep you in the game as long as possible until we can even you out." Sol said, addressing the elephant in the room. "But we're far too many red orbs short and even I can feel the strain getting to me."

He paused, his eyes glassy for a moment. "It's funny, even now I still can't stop thinking that I'd never been able to do any of this before." Sol almost made to continue before Rodin came back.

"Drinks are on the bar. Food'll take a bit longer. Hope you don't mind it hot."

"I'll have anything now. But first, I'll take that drink." Sol said before taking the glass. He was just about to raise it to his lips before stopping and holding the glass forward.

"I would like to make a toast. To our futures, may they be bountiful, bright, and happy."

Alex chuckled a bit, before clinking his glass against Sol's one and adding his own two cents. "And that Murphy won't screw us more."

*******************************************

The magic circle in the Gamestop flared red and two figures appeared from it. Both looked… a bit groggy, to be honest, but more rested and apparently ready to take on whatever was going to happen now.

Well, more or less.

"So, underground parking lot. We're going from the outside or the stairs inside?" Alex stretched his arms backward, cracking his spine, before turning fully towards Sol.

"I figure inside the mall. That way we can check on the others and then find an entrance. If one doesn't exist, then we'll check the outside of the mall for an entrance there." Sol said as he carefully made his way out of the Gamestop.

"Yeah, you're right. Also, I'm… Well, I just realized that I blew up the head of someone - that businessman - in front of kids. I may be a bad influence." Alex said, a bit sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"So, uh, don't be surprised if they don't want to see me, ok?"

"Man, I ran off with a sizzling demonic suit of armor. I highly doubt either of us are the latest and greatest with them," Sol responded.

Sol was more right about his assessment than he had realized. As the two reached the area where Alex fought the businessman, they noticed the other survivors were there, most with makeshift weapons in hand, and the teacher holding the demonic gun. The moment they heard the two approach, the other survivors turned and began to cluster together. It was a decidedly unfriendly action.

Alex stopped almost instantly, before raising his hands, aborting the motion halfway and then bringing them to his lap, left hand holding the right.

"Yeah, your reaction is valid and fair. I'm sorry for what I've shown you all." Alex looked pretty contrite.

The hand of the PE teacher tightened around the gun slightly and he looked at the two with thinly concealed anger. "That lunatic mentioned something about the two of you being part of the same group. Do you wish to explain that?"

Alex blinked, before shrugging, apparently unconcerned. "Sure. So, we got summoned all together. Big group, a bit more than a hundred people, I think. The entire group got split into three - well, four, technically - subgroups. One of those subgroups has been killed by six… demons or people, I'm not sure, with red eyes." Alex stopped for a moment to take a breath, before continuing. "That was before we met you, so I have no idea where the culprits are. Anyway, the two remaining subgroups are under a businessman and a businesswoman. We know that there are at least three big groups that have been summoned here, considering you are here and those six people are here. And we are here."

He finished by opening his hands to the side, in a sort of pacifistic gesture.

The man's free hand balled into a fist. "And what makes you any different from them? Your eyes are similar after all." He said with venom.

Alex sighed. "Similar is not the same, first of all. Second, I got the eyes at the same time I got the hair. Third, you are kinda being racist. I fought to keep you all safe, we saved your life at our expense and gave you information without asking anything in exchange. You are assuming that I'm like them just because my eyes are similar? Bit too quick on the judging." Alex's expression hadn't changed from the start, but he seemed disappointed.

"Also, I didn't take the gun and left it with you all. What are you accusing me of, exactly?" Alex questioned.

"We're not accusing you of anything. We're stating simply that we don't want you here. We know damn well we can't defeat either of you, but we can't trust you to not bring more of those lunatics down on us or to lose it yourselves. So leave. Do what you need to and leave."

Alex blinked. Sol blinked.

"We… were already going to do that? Did you think that we wanted to remain here?" Alex asked, his voice holding a rather prominent note of bafflement. His expression was also unsure about what was happening, considering the situation.

"Good, we'll take care of ourselves." The PE teacher said simply.

Sol looked between the two, slowly nodding. "We'll head out now, leave you all to your business," Sol said slowly while looking at Alex.

Alex looked back at Sol, before shrugging and turning away. "Be careful with the gun, sometimes demonic weapons have a will and can take control of the users if they aren't strong enough." He tossed his last advice to the teacher while walking away.

"Now, where are the stairs…" Muttering under his breath, he tried to see if there was any map around their position.

There were directions to the stairs for the underground lot in the form of large mall maps that were placed around the mall. "Sub-level entrance, near a post office? Well, I guess a mall would be as good a place as any." Sol said while looking at the map. Shouldn't be too far from here.

"Better than having to go around the entire mall. But, now that I've thought about it…" He started checking out the various stores around. "I think I can manage using a coffee maker. Want to go and try to see if there's a bar where we can find more food? Or even just a convenience store, to stock up a bit."

"Yeah, that would be a good idea," Sol said while looking at various stores. He then asked, "How you holding up?"

Alex stilled for a moment before his entire form slumped down. "I'm feeling like Build-A-Bear started a franchise of horror videogames. Scared all the time, tired, stressed, nervous, hanging by a thread." He let his forehead rest on the map in front of him. "I just… I miss home. I miss my laptop. I'm trying to not even think about my friends and family because I'm going to crack if I do."

Then, still leaning on the map, he turned towards Sol. "What about you?"

Sol let out a tired laugh in response. "I'd be lying through my teeth if I said anything different. I miss my home, I miss the mountains screwing up weather forecasts on me, I miss my family… I… If I have to replace a piece of myself with a demon, just please bear with me. I could try to justify it, but that would eat at me like nothing else. I'm sorry… I know it's a lot."

Sol looked back to where the other survivors would have been. "I'm scared for them, you know. Maybe it's selfish to say but I want them to survive for some peace of mind, a way to keep our karma as clean as possible. I don't know, I don't know." Sol sighed before heading down the nearest staircase, looking for the entrance to the Underground Parking Lot.

"Yeah, I don't know, either." Alex moved and grabbed Sol in a hug, squeezing him. "It's… I'm… Can we even return home?"

Sol practically tripped over himself as he heard the question. He didn't turn to Alex, didn't want him to see the look of horror on him, but his voice couldn't hide it.

"I… I hope so, I fucking hope so." Sol balled his fists. "If not, then… then we'll just have to make do… become demon slayers and, and…" He trailed off.

"And I guess deal with this as best we can."

"Yeah, yeah. We can… We've managed to arrive at this point. We can go forward. Devil May Cry is gotta be hiring, no? So, there's that." Alex's voice was choked off, but he continued. "And… we have a lot of time. To find a way. There's a lot of magic. And, you know, I already have Time powers. Maybe we can find something with control over space. We'll see."

Then, he fell silent for a minute, the hug still there. Finally, after that moment, he let Sol go and took a deep breath. When he spoke, his voice was way more calm.

Even if it was a simple facade.

"Ok, I'm… ok. Let's go and find someplace where we can take a lot of sugary stuff."

Sol turned around, pained relief on his face. "Dibs on anything with cookie dough in it."

Alex chuckled a bit before the duo started moving. It was another hour, another minute of which they were alive and free. It was enough.

At least, for now.

*********************************************

They had managed to find - and raid - a coffee shop, resulting in a lot of snacks and similar food. They had also demolished the pastries that were still there. And only slightly stale, for some reason.

Still, they were full since… before the nightmare horse. So, they ate and drank - they had managed to puzzle out the coffee machine and went to town, making whatever they wanted - and relaxed, the stress on their shoulders sloughing off like water on a duck.

Then, after they were rested, relaxed, and full, they moved once more.

The electronic shop was on the way to the stairs, so it too got raided. Simply entering, going in the back, and taking what they wanted. They didn't destroy the rest but didn't care about hiding their passage. Computers, cellphones, laptops, desktops… whatever they wanted. It might have been useful in the future and it wasn't like anyone was going to miss it.

The stairs towards the underground parking lot were there. Dark. The light didn't work, apparently.

"Should we risk it and see if the lights are working in the basement level?" Sol asked Alex.

"Well, I think I can see a bit through the dark… but not that much." Alex shrugged, before taking a couple of steps in the dark.

"Yep, I can see a little. What do you say, do we try to go down? It's gonna be risky as hell - pun intended - but, if I recall correctly, more danger means more reward." Alex said.

"Might as well, I'll go first. Be bait. Anything you see that looks hostile, blast it and I'll try to follow the shot. Maybe we'll be lucky and the lights will be on further down." Sol winced after he finished speaking. "I should not have said that."

Alex gave Sol a flat look. "Yeah, you really shouldn't have said that." Still, he started walking downward.

The stairs were in good condition, barring the fact that they were empty and dark, but still easy enough to navigate until they reached the underground floor. It was dimly lit by the emergency lights, showing the number of cars around. It wasn't as packed as the lot above ground, but there was still a decent number. And, in the office where security would have been, a fairly strong blue glow.

"I think that we got a hit." Alex pointed. There was enough light to see, at least a bit.

"Cool, at least we can see somewhat, maybe we're lucky and someone left their keys in the car," Sol said as began to move past Alex and inspect one of the cars. As he did, he noticed that something reflected a hint of light in one of the cars. Upon further inspection, Sol asked aloud, "Is that a mask?"

"A mask?" Alex asked, blinking in confusion, before turning and looking at the area behind Sol. Nothing.

"There's nothing behind you. Maybe it's… a car ornament? What mask is it?"

"It's like a Venetian masquerade mask, but completely white, nothing interesting about. It's kinda creepy looking at it in this light." Sol replied.

"I can guess." Alex joined Sol in looking at the inside of the car, before noticing something.

"Sol… how can there be the reflection of a mask when there aren't any masks behind you?" His words were measured and calm. Too calm.

Sol began to respond. "Maybe b…" However, as he did, the reflection began to warp around the mask, sending Sol scrambling backward. From the area around the mask, a black mass began to push out from behind the mask, followed by a pair of arms and an oversized pair of scissors.

"Oh damn it all, isn't that the demon type Nico hates on a scientific level?" Sol asked quickly as he drew his blade.

"Yeah, yeah, the Scissor something. Death Scissors?" Alex was also scrambling back, Calcabrina already in his hands, ready to open if the demon started moving forward. "Wasn't it intangible or something?"

As if to answer the question the scissor demon seemed to float down and flow into the floor, disappearing easily as it appeared.

"Oh, that's why Nico hates them," Sol said quietly as he drew his pistol in response.

"Fuck me," Alex growled, before turning around and putting his back against Sol's. "Let's just… keep our eyes open. And try to not get ambushed, this thing seems a step up from the others."

The metal tip of his Devil Arm was tapping on the concrete of the parking lot, a nervous tap-tap-tap that echoed against the walls of the underground man-made cave.

Sol looked around the garage for the demon. The dim lights cast shadows that seemed to stretch indefinitely, which only served to make seeing the demon that much harder. He thought for a moment he saw something, like the haze of heat on a summer day there was a ripple in the concrete, just where the shadow and light connected.

"It's like Geryon. Alex, the wall!" He shouted before firing at the spot he saw.

"Oh, come on!" A volley of bullets slammed against the walls from where the Death Scissors came out, except it didn't really stop it. It only nicked the blade it had in its hand before it moved enough that Alex had to move a little to keep it in sight.

Sadly, keeping something in sight didn't mean being able to hit, considering that the light was playing against them, throwing shadows all around and making the fast-moving demon vanish easily.

"Hey Alex, how far underground do you think we are right now?" Sol asked as he watched out for another manifestation of the scissors.

"I have absolutely no idea," Alex answered with a grunt, while he had to open his umbrella to stop a sudden assault from the side, an assault that he didn't manage to counter in time before the Death Scissor vanished into another wall.

"I was thinking we could blow the roof open to get some extra li…" Sol was cut off as the scissors came out at him. He managed to block the strike before the scissors fled back. Whether it was from the impact against Calcabrina or Gevaudan, there was obvious damage along its weapon.

"New plan." Alex uttered, before charging a bullet in his hand, waiting for the moment the Death Scissors emerged from the shadows. When that happened, he shot it almost at point black, considering that it was coming straight at him with the giant scissors opened and ready to cut him in two.

One of the two blades flew away, staggering the Death Scissors for a moment.

Sol seemed to catch on and moved to strike. Extending Gevaudan to its full length, Sol lashed out at the scissors, carving deeply into the darkness that made up its body. The demon howled before fleeing back into the walls.

"Okay, so we can stun it. Same plan when it appears next then?" Sol asked.

"Hey, if it works, it works." Alex shrugged, another bullet being charged in the palm of his hand.

Several long seconds passed before the Death Scissor appeared once more, the single blade already in a descending arc, aiming straight at Sol, the mask cackling.

Sol managed to get his sword up in time and smash it directly into the half-scissor. The recoil forced him a step back before he lunged and landed another blow on the half-scissor. The Death Scissor fled back into the shadows.

"Two strikes on him this time. Think the third will be the one." Sol asked Alex.

"Let's hope. Did they have some sort of recovery ability or am I misremembering things?" Alex asked while scanning the area around them. Now that the initial hit of adrenaline had passed, he was able to analyze things more calmly.

It was that calm that allowed him to spot the demon appearing from their side, on the edge of his left eye, making him turn and open the umbrella. The blade hit the cloth and stopped cold.

"Kaboom." A charged shot slammed against the Death Scissor, sending it flying back. "Sol, now!"

"Stinger!" Sol roared, flying forward into the Death Scissor. The blow forced it back and while it was screaming, Sol initiated his other technique. The horizontal slash sliced through the mask and the shadowy phantom broke down into red orbs.

"I really… No, no I'm not going to finish that sentence. Let's just see what else we can find down here." Sol said.

"Well, there's that." Alex pointed at the blue glow coming from the inside of the guard office. "You go and get your piece of blue orb, I'm gonna go and see if there's anything else around here. You never know, maybe there's another secret challenge or something." With a shrug, he turned and started moving around, trying to see if there was anything of interest.

"Alright, if you see anything else, just call out," Sol said before entering the office. Grabbing the orb piece, he felt a familiar jolt.

"That's three of four," Sol said before looking through the rest of the office. There wasn't really much there on the walls. Trying the desk, he realized that it was locked. He tried it again and with a wrench, the desk drawer came loose. There wasn't much in there, but…

"A key?" Sol asked, looking at the simple key with a red plastic tag. Wasn't a car key, too small for that, still he better take it with him.

"Nothing out there. Did you find something?" Alex's head popped up from the door, looking in. He looked vaguely annoyed. "What's that key for?" His eyes soon zeroed towards the key in Sol's hands.

"Don't know, but if there isn't anything down here, then maybe this key is for something upstairs. Can't be for anything on the second floor, we've been there enough. Maybe a roof access key?" Sol questioned.

"I mean, I checked the walls, but the light is what it is. I couldn't see any other side rooms or other areas of the parking lot. Nor stairs going down, so…" Alex shrugged, taking a couple of steps inside the office and checking the key.

"There's only a R on the tag, so…. maybe? I mean, all the shops inside here were open - barring the ones that the Kids had closed - and the alarms were not active." And they knew, seeing as they had gone on a 'shopping spree' using a Five Finger Discount on… a lot of things.

"Want to take the elevator and go directly to the roof? I think there's one near the stairs. Still active, I mean."

"Yeah, we can avoid the students and the teacher. It can also probably help get a bird's eye view of everything, maybe we can see our next descent point while we're at it." Sol said, pocketing the keys.

"Yeah. I mean, we don't have a full map of the city. And maybe there will be something useful. Do you still have the pamphlet you got near the market? Maybe we can use that?" The two of them walked towards the elevator while discussing the possibilities, unsure of what to do. Their path wasn't really clear, considering that they could have an entire city to explore to find the demon that had brought them there.

*****************************************************

Standing in front of the closed door to the roof, Alex patted Sol's back. "Well, you have the key. Go on and try to open it. If it doesn't work, we can always break it."

"Here goes," Sol said before inserting the key. It went easily and turned just as well. Opening the door, Sol walked out onto the roof and stopped.

"Oh." He said weakly. Redgrave City, a once modern and thriving location, was in ruins. Massive roots rent through various buildings, structural damage and collapse were blatantly evident across the city's broad horizon, and whole areas were flooded.

"Oh… fuck." Alex pointed to the side. The flooded parts continued for a fair bit until they dried up again. Only, not back into concrete and buildings, but in some sort of fleshy landscape that soon twisted and changed in some sort of eldritch geography, Predominantly in red, gray, and black, covered in skittering things and some others. Finally, right around the trunk of the Qliphoth - it was massive. It wasn't a tree, it wasn't even a skyscraper, it was… mind-bending. It blocked the sky and the horizon with more than just its physical bulk. It was the presence of it that weighed on them - there was a castle. A medieval castle, looking a bit like a ring, around the trunk. Massive and foreboding, light gray stone and black accents.

"I guess that's where we need to go. Kinda looks like the castle from Mallet Island doesn't it?" Sol said easily enough. "It's like a collection of bad memories overlapping each other here."

"Yeah, it kinda does." Alex nodded, looking some more. It was really a disaster. However, it was the sound of an explosion coming from behind them that made them turn.

There was a tower. A high, high tower, completely white, with one side having recently exploded. Two figures, one dressed completely in black and another dressed in white, were falling from the hole, while the sun's ray shone on something gold inside it.

Then, more people dressed in white crowded around the edge of the tower and the two struggling people vanished behind the buildings.

"Well, that was… strange." Alex's eyes were wide open, a surprised look on his face.

"You think they were the Red Eyes or businessman and businesswoman finally going at it?" Sol asked, his hands moving towards his weapons.

"I honestly… Look, I don't know. I have a theory, but nothing more. It could be wrong." Alex raised his hands, taking a step back towards the center of the roof, before looking around. "Want to hear it?"

"Might as well, because I am at a complete loss otherwise." Sol responded while still looking at the white tower.

Alex took a deep breath. Then another. And another.

"We know that we aren't the only ones that have been summoned here. We know that there are at least three groups: ours, the kids, and the Red eyes." He started, walking in a circle. "We know that at least two groups have been summoned in groups of more than one hundred people. Ours and the kids were. And, if the Red Eyes are so powerful, probably they were too. And probably they have killed all of them to gain that much power."

Another deep breath.

"That." He sliced his finger towards the tower, where the people could still be seen near the top, through the giant hole. "Is definitely not something from Redgrave City. And the number of people, all in white? Looks suspicious to me. So, it may be another group."

He wasn't hyperventilating, but almost.

"There could be four groups. But there could be more. So, more than one hundred people in a group, probably more than four groups. I'm going to guess." He stopped and turned fully towards Sol, raising both his hands. Then, he raised two fingers from his left.

"Two sure groups: ours and the Kids. Both more than one hundred." Then, he raised two fingers on his right hand. "Two maybe groups: Red Eyes and White and Black. Also probably more than one hundred, considering the number of people on top of that tower."

Then, he raised another finger from both hands. "Here's my guess. Six groups. One Hundred and Eleven people per group. A total of Six Hundred and Sixty-Six people." He let his hands fall on his sides. "Narrative convention points to that. And we are dealing with demons. It could be that they are using that number to strengthen themselves. But."

And he raised two fingers on his right hand. "But. They hit a speed bump. Can you imagine which one is?"

Sol looked at Alex briefly before back to the tower. "Us, those students and the teacher." He began to pace and snap his finger. "Okay so, we're not taking the bait on that poisoned fruit. The students aren't taking the bait on that either… I hope."

He turned back to look at the tower. "But they, and the others…" He trailed off. "You mentioned narrative convention before right? What if the power aspect was a bonus… like a Ponzi scheme? If there really are six groups of 111, then it stands to reason that that sacrifice would be enough to do whatever is needed. The power aspect is really like having a big meal."

He stared at the tower, before asking aloud. "Who the hell are you, group 4?"

"Well, technically only us. The rest is the butterfly effect, but yeah. Point remains. Now, I COULD try and speculate some more about the rest of the scheme, but I really don't know anything else." Alex ran his hand between his hair, dislodging the hair tie. He grabbed it before it could reach the ground and started retying his hair.

"Really, the lack of information is what is hurting us. So, assuming that the six groups - assuming there ARE six groups. Or, well, were six groups - have been summoned in six different parts of the city, where would it be?" The question hung in the air, while Alex looked down at the tower, before checking the place immediately around.

"It could form a circle around the city. Like a Star of David. It could be randomized. It could be… I don't even know. It could be anything. But… The tower. Can you see any other landmarks around?"

"Well, we have the Tower, The Castle, here possibly…Sol trailed off before looking around the horizon. His eyes manage to spot several things in the distance. The first was a structure on a large hill. The hill itself showed signs of heavy damage or possibly sheer erosion, but there was a building on it. He couldn't make out many of the details, but he was sure it was a mansion. The second almost blended into the city if not for the difference in construction. It was a skyscraper, emphasis on was as the building was broken into several massive pieces. What made it stand out was just how different it looked.

The ruined skyscraper was almost black against the other buildings. It was a striking contrast. There was something not quite right about it though and the more Sol looked at it, the more his eyes began to strain before he was forced to look in another direction.

Clearing his eyes, he noticed the last thing. It was almost perfectly hidden in the destruction of the city. The flooded waters may have pooled and destroyed many of the smaller buildings but they were flowing. It was slow at first, but as they went the waters became faster, churning more, until whitecaps formed and they were all heading down somewhere they couldn't see.

"Like the waters of life… If we're location 1 of 6 then those other locations must be either entrance points or descent points. It's just a matter of getting to them safely." Sol as he turned to Alex.

"Yeah. If we are correct, anyway. My theory could be a total wash and I could send us on a lark. Anyway." He refocused his eyes toward the tower. "Think we should try the tower first? I mean, it looks like it's populated, so… Also, I wonder what caused such an explosion."

He turned towards Sol. "You? Want to start anywhere else?"

"No, not really. That old manor seems too far away, I'd rather not risk those if we don't have to, and that broken skyscraper… that some bad vibes right there." Sol said before making it to the door. He stopped and groaned.

"Hey Alex, I think I found our next secret challenge room. On the back of the roof access door were similar markings denoting a secret.

"You up for this?" Sol asked.

"More Red Orbs. Yeah, I'm up for this, I need a lot to buy more techniques. Activate it." Alex smiled, his grin bloodthirsty.

The symbol on the wall started to shine, before the two of them vanished, finding themselves in a circular room, with several columns rising from the sides, twelve of them. In front of them, was a red, pulsating portal that started bubbling upwards the moment they appeared.

A Hell Caina slowly manifested from the red bubble, soon followed by another. It didn't look like it was going to stop.

"Oh boy. Arena fights. Survive, ok?" Alex smiled, although he was feeling a bit sick in his stomach at the scene.

"Yeah. Best of luck." Sol said before drawing his sword and gun and throwing himself into the horde with a Stinger. The attack separated the horde in two and it was quickly followed by a Rush Cut, creating further distance between themselves and the demons.

"I've got these four!" Sol shouted as he dodged a swipe from a scythe.

"I'll get the other four, I guess." Alex shrugged, seeing Sol so excitable calmed him down, and he unsheathed his blade. Then, he started shooting.

*********************************************

When the two of them returned to the room, they were covered in blood - some theirs, most from the demon - and were panting. Sol more than Alex.

"I admit…" Alex said as he leaned on the wall, eyes closed. "I didn't expect the giant lizard at the end. That was dangerous.".

"Ha, ha… That was, guess we just encountered the older nastier cousins of the Pride demons from 3 huh?" Sol asked with a pained smile. There was a nasty cut along the inside of his left arm. The wound was bleeding, enough to be painful, but not debilitating.

"Yeah. Yeah, we did." Alex grunted and then something in his back popped with a loud crack. "I think I had something in my back when I landed on the ground before. You still have the First Aid Kit?" He turned towards Sol, his eyes worried and looking at the wound.

"You still have that Vitality Star I gave you right?" Sol asked instead while nursing his arm.

"I'm fine. You're not. Now, do you still have the First Aid Kit or not?" Alex didn't relent, turning towards him and holding his arm, trying to see better the wound. Yes, he still had the Star and he seemed to think about using it on Sol as soon as possible.

"Remember I threw it away in a rage a while ago. I'll buy another one when we next get the…" Sol was cut off, as something leapt into the room. It was vaguely humanoid but very blatantly reptilian.

"That's not a blade or an assault… that's one of the new demons from 5 right?" Sol asked as he got ready.

"Can't remember." Alex growled his weapon already in his hand, the blade gleaming in the sun. "Anyway, it doesn't really matter." He aimed the tip of the umbrella at it while it was jumping towards them and started shooting. The first bullet made it stumble. The subsequent ones kept it in the air.

"He's dead either way." After keeping it in the air for a few moments, he slashed with his sword one, two, three times, and the head of the demon fell to the ground.

"I'm pretty sure that there is a pharmacy in the mall. We're going there and disinfecting that cut. And some bandages. No discussion." His tone broke no arguments.

"Yeah, yeah. Maybe. Well we have compensation. So silver linings." Sol said before a mass of red orbs fell from the sky.

"Better than nothing. On the other hand, we did get a few Orbs from the room, so… Eh." Alex shrugged, before opening the door back towards the inside of the mall. "Now, you have a choice. We can either find a pharmacy, we go to the statute or I use the Star on you. Which is going to be? To be clear: the statue is for you to get another blue orb, you should have more than enough." Again, his tone was steely, and very worried.

"Let's check the pharmacy. The med kit wasn't all that great, we can take much more and at a much cheaper price." Sol said.

"Yeah, ok, fine. We're still stopping at the statue before going, I want to get a few more skills. I don't have anything for Calcabrina yet and I want another spell I saw." Alex muttered, before moving forward and taking the spot in front of Sol.

Luckily, nothing happened on the way down and, thanks to this being a mall, the directions to the pharmacy were clearly labeled. So, it took five minutes to reach it. Once there, however, he stopped.

"I don't actually know where the first aid kits are held?"

"I got this." Sol said as he perused through several isles and reached for a small box made of opaque plastic.

"I've seen enough of these in various general stores and ranger stations when I'd go for long trips. I like… I guess I liked, until further notice, to get away from big cities for a week or two, so I kinda have an idea." Sol said as he opened the small first aid case and pulled out disinfectant before hissing at its effects. Wrapping the bandage, Sol looked around further.

"You think we should raid anything other than some of the medical kits?" He asked.

Alex looked tempted for a moment, before sighing. "While I would like to say yes, I'm… well, there are the Kids here. I would feel bad if we took something that could help them with their survival. I know." He raised his hand towards Sol to forestall any possible comeback. "I know that we have more or less robbed a few stores. But those were luxuries. Even if I have what amounts to half a jewelry in my inventory, those are still luxuries. Not things that could save a life."

"You're right. We'll take an additional kit each, let them know the place is here, statue, and leave. We should be able to leave through the parking lot we fought the Bianco Angelo in." Sol said while nodding in agreement.

"Sure, that works." Alex nodded, starting to look around to see if they had one of the bigger ones. Even with him not finding anything, it didn't take much time and, soon, they were back in the Mall, moving towards the Gamestop. Alex stopped all of a sudden.

"You know, maybe it's better if you go alone to talk with the Kids. I mean, they didn't really… like me the last time we talked. You would be received better." Alex was blushing slightly before he turned. "I'm gonna stay near, like… behind the wall."

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense." Sol said before making his way over to the other group. Raising both hands above his head, he called out. "Hey, guy you're not the biggest fan of approaching."

Several noises alerted Sol as the people began to gather, the PE teacher front and center.

"We told you to leave." He stated simply.

"Yep, and we are. Alex is taking care of some business at the statue. I'm here to let you all know four things. One," Sol begins raising an Index finger. "There was a pretty powerful demon in the basement underground complex. You can spot them easily if you catch sight of a white, blank carnival mask. They can phase through walls and floors, so you know, rather. dangerous."

He raises another finger. "Two, there was a trap, sorta, on the door of the roof access. We took care of that too, so you can all get up there without worrying about triggering it. It's not a pretty sight, up on the roof. Three, the pharmacy isn't too far away, and we took two med packs for ourselves. However, everything else in there is yours."

He raised his last finger. "We saw a fight a ways away from here at a white tower. We're heading to investigate that as soon as Alex finishes up. Then. we'll be out of your hair."

"Thanks." The teacher in a very insincere tone, before brandishing his pistol. "Time for you to leave."

Sol grimaced under his helmet but kept things civil. "Well, thank you for your hospitality, and stay safe," Sol said before leaving the other group. As he made his way past where Alex was, he muttered. "Goddamn, I forgot how much I hated high school teachers and high school bullshit."

"Eh, yeah." Alex didn't say anything else, he just turned and walked towards the statue. It wasn't, again, a long walk and, soon, they both were near it.

"You go first, I always take a long time choosing. Yeah, the statue alters time, but I need to… process something I realized. I'll tell you once I can put it in words." Alex's hand went, without his conscious notice, to his right side. Around where the liver was, more or less.

Sol's eyes seemed to catch the motion though he didn't say anything, just nodding and touching the statue.

When having his one-on-one with the statue, he looked at his wallet "9,850 huh… Okay Statue, item menu."

The menu opened and Sol scrolled down until he reached the Blue Orb. It was now at 6,000. Making the purchase, Sol felt the pain in his arm lessen to nothing and watched his counter drop to 3,850. He popped into weapon abilities and picked up Sinker for 1,000, dropping his count to 2,850.

"I'm going to save up the rest. There are a bunch of skills I want to get going forward. Thank you again." He said to the statue before reality snapped back.

"Okay, Alex, it's all yours."

"Thanks…" In a rather subdued manner, Alex tapped the statue, finding himself in the white-gold space. Only then did he take a deep breath, well aware that no one could see him while here.

"What the fuck." His utterance was low enough that only he could hear it - not that it mattered, as there was no one else - and he had to stand there and breathe for a minute before he could steel himself and get up once more. "Ok."

"Can I see what I can get for Calcabrina? Oh, and the spells."

A window opened in front of him.

Spells:
Enochian Magic Level 1 – Basic: Bought
Enochian Magic Level 2 – Intermediate: 2,500 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 3 – Advanced: 5,000 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 4 – Master: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 1 – Basic: Bought
Magic Knowledge Level 2 – Intermediate: 5,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 3 – Advanced: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 4 – Master: 20,000 Red Orbs
Bullet Spell: Bought

• Rapid Fire 1: Bought
  • Rapid Fire 2: 4.000 Red Orbs
    • Bullet Storm: 8.000 Red Orbs
• Double Bullet: 500 Red Orbs
• Charged Bullet 1: 600 Red Orbs
  • Charged Bullet 2: 2.700 Red Orbs
    • Bomb Bullet: 9.000 Red Orbs
• Elemental Infusion: 10.000 Red Orbs

Barrier Spell: Bought

• Full Barrier: 2.500 Red Orbs
• Strengthened Barrier 1: 2.000 Red Orbs
  • Strengthened Barrier: 2: 8.000 Red Orbs
    • Castle of Stone: 16.000 Red Orbs

Beam Spell: 500 Red Orbs

• Empowered Beam 1: 2.000 Red Orbs
  • Empowered Beam 2: 6.000 Red Orbs
    • Laser Beam: 12.000 Red Orbs
• Elemental Infusion: 10.000 Red Orbs

Calcabrina (Combined Form)

• Float (Keeping the umbrella open will slow down any fall to a gentle float) - 2.500 Red Orbs
  • Levitate (As long as the Umbrella is open, the weight of the user is reduced to almost nothing. Higher jump, can walk on fragile and liquid surfaces) - Require Float,5.000 Red Orbs
    • Fly (Glide/flight for short distance with directional momentum chosen at the start of the movement) - Require Levitate, 10.000 Red Orbs
      • Defying Gravity (Unlimited flight, cost Magical Energy) - Require Fly, 300.000 Red Orbs
• Tar Beam (Only combined form, charged.) (Charge the entire surface of the Umbrella and shoot a giant beam.) - Require Beam Spell to be bought, 25.000 Red Orbs
  • Improved Tar Beam (Can charge the beam for longer. Damage is increased) - Require Tar Beam, 50.000 Red Orbs
• Calca (Sheath)
  • Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red Orbs
    • Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs
      • Impervious (Require Waterproof, Require Funeral March for a Marionette) (Extend the shield further, the barrier is strong enough to block any attack once. Cool down after this use) - 50.000 Red Orbs
  • Puppet Waltz (Require Beam Spell) (Lasers come out of the tassels hanging from the spokes of the umbrella, can be kept active during movement) - 15.000 Red Orbs
    • Funeral March for a Marionette (Require Puppet Waltz) (Calca gets thrown up in the air, lasers come down from the tassels and it starts turning on itself, the lasers hitting all around in a casual pattern) - 35.000 Red Orbs
• Brina (Sword)
  • Running Stitch (The tip of the sword is charged with magical energy and, on hit, releases a thin beam of energy in the enemy) - 8.000 Red Orbs
    • Cross Stitch (Require Running Stitch, Require Beam Spell) (The tip of the sword can now leave behind up to two trails of energy that will shoot forward. Charged) - 20.000 Red Orbs
      • Cross Stitch (Require Cross Stitch) (The number of trails of energy that can be used is now unlimited, but need to be continuously chained) - 40.000 Red Orbs
  • Back Stitch (Require Barrier Spell, Require Beam Spell) (Enlarge the size of the sword by overlaying cutting barriers on it. The size can change from slightly bigger than normal to great sword size. Weight is unchanged) - 25.000 Red Orbs
    • Blanket Stitch (Require Back Stitch) (Can now enlarge the sword to bus size. Weight is unchanged) - 50.000 Red Orbs

"Lots of options." Alex hummed, before glancing at how many Red Orbs he had in his wallet.

9,800 Red Orbs

"Well, it's a bit low, but I'll… get what I can. So. Let's see…" He started browsing the options, taking his sweet time, until he decided.

But, before he could choose anything, another window opened in front of him. However, this one made his expression turn icy.

Geryon Hybrid Powers

• Blink (Move from one place to another without any time in between. Limited to five seconds of movements, only places that are physically accessible): 7.500 Red Orbs
  • Blink 2 (Time of movement is extended to ten seconds): 20.000 Red Orbs
    • Blink 3 (Time of movement is limitless, depending on magical energy consumed): 75.000 Red Orbs
• Time Bubble (Create a bubble of slowed time in front of you that lasts for three seconds): 15.000 Red Orbs
• Haste (Speed your personal time up, moving faster and doing more things in less time): 35.000 Red Orbs
• Slow (Slow down a target's personal time, making them move like they are in slow motion)(Consume Magical Energy): 50.000 Red Orbs

"Of course." His head dipped slightly before he stopped.

"Doesn't matter. I don't have enough Red Orbs. So, remaining with the original options it is." He removed the Hybrid Powers section and returned to the one before.

By now, ignoring the default options that still relied on the lent power was automatic.

"I'm gonna take the Magical Knowledge Level 2 and the Beam spell. That will leave me with 1.800 Red Orbs that I'm going to keep and not use, for now, as I want more. We're going to need to go hunting." He muttered, before finalizing his purchases , the Divinity Statue returning to a normal statue and leaving Alex with a rather big headache and Sol at his side.

"You okay," Sol asked while gesturing to Alex's head.

"Second level of general magic knowledge. Headache is painful, but it's already going away, don't worry." He smiled, although it was clear that he wasn't feeling completely well, for now.

"So, Tower? Considering…" He waved his hand towards the direction where the Kids were.

"Yeah, I have no idea if that group will be friends or foes, but it's better to head them off now if they're like the Red Eyes," Sol said before making his way out of the back room.

"Yeah, definitely." Alex nodded.

The two, walking together, moved out of the Mall, leaving behind a distrustful high school teacher, a group of traumatized high school kids, a rather upset and possibly dangerous - for himself - goth boy named Kurt, and an opening towards Rodin.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Who are the figures Alex and Sol saw on the rooftop? What other horrors and demons will they encounter during their time in Hell? How good are Rodin's deal and prices really? Find out next time!

In all seriousness, the next chapter kicks off the beginning of the next major arc which runs about... five or so chapters. Some major events are incoming. Also, we get to see some of Alex's purchasable skills! These will become more visible as the story progresses so as to not spoil things ahead of time.

 

[Atma]

The two began to travel away from the mall from the parking lot that they had fought in before. The tower was easily visible in the distance and though it would take some time to get there on foot, the sounds of battle still echoed throughout the ruined copy of the city.

Giant roots slithered through the side alleys and broke the buildings, forming an intricate layer that seemed to go towards their target, in a sort of curved shape. Almost like it was forming a circle around it.

Also, there were the demons' ambushes. Several of them, in fact. Nothing more than the bottom of the barrels, but, after the tenth or so ambush from a group of Empusa, both of them were starting to get a bit irritated.

"Is it me…" Alex was sheathing the blade back, while grabbing the Red Orbs that the Empusa had just dropped. "Or are they getting more and more frequent? The attacks, I mean."

Sol retracted Gevaudan and responded. "No, you're right, before we could at least travel for several rooms or a good distance without encountering demons. But now? We're definitely seeing more of them."

"Also, those roots." Alex waved his hand towards the giant roots that blocked several alleys. "They… I dunno, it almost feels like they are circling something. They look more like a wall than a root system, I mean." He turned back towards the way they had come from and pointed to his right.

"Look. The roots only are on this side of the street."

The roots were situated oddly Sol realized. Looking at the two sides of the road, he asked Alex. "Should we just climb over, or at least to the top and see what's on the other side?"

"Honestly, I would like to say yes, but I don't think it's a good idea, somehow. Mostly because we don't have a good way to deal with flying enemies and something's telling me that there would definitely be some if we tried to climb them." Alex confessed, looking towards the roots, following them with his eyes.

"We could try and find an opening. Otherwise, we're going to climb. Fair?"

"Fair," Sol said before trying to find a potential exit. The road began to wind around the roots before the roots themselves wound over the road like a series of archways. Eventually, the two found the tunneling path turning into a large open area which could have been the one they believed was present.

"Nothing here. Guess it was all just a red herring." Sol stated before there was a noise coming from the roots. Something bulged and moved within them. Twisting and churning, the shape began to increase in size before something gnawed its way free of the Qliphoth's embrace. With a resounding clatter and the sound of metal grinding on stone, the shape shook off the Qliphoth flesh that clung and spread its wing.

The demonic bird flapped its wings experimentally before lunging at Sol and Alex.

Hraesvelgr: The Stymphalian Tree-Eater​

It was on them in a matter of moments. The two, being still keyed on by the fights they had to deal with during their journey, threw themselves to the side, rolling on the ground. Once they reached a stop, the bird had already turned and flown away, the concrete where Alex and Sol were covered in long gashes, broken and cracking away.

"What the…" Alex muttered, looking at the vanishing form of the giant bird. "Did we find the nest of that bird?"

"Maybe, or maybe we found its hunting ground," Sol said as he tried to see where it went. The bird's shape was obscured for a few moments before careening down towards the duo.

"Here it comes!" Sol shouted as he prepared to dodge once again.

"Wait." Alex's hand on his shoulder stopped Sol from moving away. "Look. It's not coming this way. It's going… There." He pointed down the street.

At that moment, a plume of smoke exploded from a building to the left, down the street, instantly followed by a wall of sound that was a definite explosion. The bird was also influenced by the sound, it seemed, as it stopped its descent with a metallic squawk, before rising back up and vanishing somewhere in the sky.

"Something's telling me that we have found either more demons or a new group of people." Alex's remark was rather dry.

"Should we go and see if we can say hello?" Sol asked warily

"Do we have another choice? Realistically, I mean. We were already going towards the Tower to see what was happening. I was already banking on needing to meet someone for that." Alex shrugged, before turning slightly towards Sol. "Up to you, though. If you want to try and sneak in, I'm game."

"Why not both? We'll sneak along and see what they're like, and how they act. If we don't like it, we quietly and calmly retrace our steps and stay clear of them until they eventually pass."

"Ah, the cautious approach. I like it. After you." Alex mock-bowed to him, grinning all the time, before starting to walk behind Sol, down the street.

Sol walked through the winding roots of the Qliphoth in a cautious manner, making sure his steps were as soft as he could. He was not all too thrilled at the idea of alerting people who may or not be bloodthirsty psychopaths. The noises from the Stymphalian seemed to increase and decrease as if it were flying to and from the area.

Was it searching for something? Trying to somehow force its way back into the root system. Sol couldn't be sure. However, he began to notice that the canopy of roots was thinning, with some even showing signs of damage. As he continued forward, a wall of roots had been severely damaged, possibly big enough to fit through and definitely big enough to look through. He motioned Alex towards his position to overlook the potential site of the bird's impact.

Alex slowly reached Sol in his hiding spot, walking on the balls of his feet to avoid the heel of his boots making any loud sound. "So." His whisper was barely enough to be heard from his friend. "What do you see?"

The question, while it sounded a bit absurd, wasn't. Considering that Sol was near the corner of the building at the end of the street, while Alex was behind Sol, thus unable to see what was happening without exposing himself too much.

The destroyed area was populated by a good number of people recovering from the crash landing of a particular metal bird. Sol could see that they were easily distinguished by clothing and appearance. One group was dressed in a lot of black leather jackets, carefully made to look with various brighter designs and images across the backs and sleeves. Some of these people sported mo-hawks and faux-hawks, while others had more normally styled hair that was either bleached, dyed, or left to its natural color hair. All in all, their image gave Sol the vibe of demonically charged punk rockers.

The other group… the other group concerned him. They were, and the key emphasis here was the word were, extremely clean-cut. Wearing almost white, their too-clean-cut appearance made them stand out against the punks and the desolated city. Like a lot of white. Upon further observation, Sol realized that their clothing was almost like a uniform, and that gave Sol pause. Something about that bothered Sol more than the punks.

He turned back to Alex before whispering. "It's the two groups we saw from the mall. Seems to be a religious group vs punk rockers. Got a bad vibe from the religious group. Take a look." Sol said as he moved around Alex.

Alex blinked, before exchanging places with Sol and peeking out from the corner. The way the punks were groaning, but getting up and helping one another was kinda nice to see. On the other hand, the white-clad people… Yeah, Alex was feeling a bit strange watching them.

There was something… He blinked and went back behind the building.

"Is it me…" He started, looking at Sol. "Or are they all white? Er, caucasian, I mean."

Sol looked at Alex, and then snuck back to look again. "No, no your right. They're all white. The punks aren't but the religious are… I really don't like where this is going."

"I mean, it doesn't really mean anything. It's just a detail that… stuck out to me. Along with…" Alex checked quickly once more, before hiding again. "Well, they have a bird with open wings on the back of the jackets, they are not touching each other, they seem to glare at the punks, especially those helping each other out..."

Sol stopped, "Open bird effigy, all white, and possibly open racism… We got nazis don't we?"

Alex stopped as well, before, slowly, removing his glasses and facepalming. "Of course, there would be nazis. Why wouldn't a demon summon nazis?" He sighed, long and tired.

"History of occult leanings, general lack of human decency and morals to begin with, take your pick… Well… silver linings… I guess we won't have to worry about morals getting in the way, if we have to deal with them. Hell, they might do use the favor and off themselves 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' style." Sol said with a shaky laugh. He was not a fan of the notion of taking human lives, but at least he could safely say that he'd be removing a legitimate threat to the world.

"As is my personal opinion that nazis aren't human beings and that they forfeit any and all protection from the law, morality and my own sense of justice when they started being nazis, I'm plenty in agreement with you." Alex nodded, replacing the glasses on his face. "The main problem is to see how strong they are against us. If they are using the demon's power, they are probably more advanced than us. Probably."

"I've watched and read enough about their odd obsession with the occult to know that they've probably been juicing, thinking they could outsmart the chess master. What do you think we should do? Intervene and fight alongside the punks or stay back?" Sol asked.

"Well, at least you aren't going to say something like trying to listen to them. Or, heaven forbid, helping them. I know you aren't like that, don't worry, I'm just… despairing." Alex tried to placate Sol before he could say anything. "But yeah, I'm firmly on the punks' side. Maybe we can introduce ourselves once the nazis aren't around anymore?"

"Yeah." Sol said in agreement before noticing that the sudden intrusion of the metal bird must have caused the two groups to decide that enough was enough for the day. They were splitting, shooting dirty looks at each other with the punks looking comparatively better than their foes. Said punks were also heading in a rightward direction which Sol hoped was going in their direction as well.

"Let's say hi to some hopefully new friends."

"Yeah, that sounds fun and not at all dangerous." Alex snarked, but he was smiling slightly.

"Let's follow them from the back until we are sure that the nazis aren't around, then say hi? So that we don't risk meeting the enemy while we're trying to greet them."

Sol led on ahead, moving quietly to not attract the groups' combined attention. The twisting roots of the Qliphoth created winding paths across the broken and twisted road. Every now and then, the cry of the Stymphalian could be heard in the distance followed by a crash of something. A not so quiet reminder of one of the two present threats that existed in the area.

"Well, this isn't creepy at all." Alex muttered, his voice barely loud enough to be heard by Sol before he turned the corner where the Punks had disappeared. It led into a small plaza - something that gave both of them a quick flashback of another plaza - with several barricades made of both stone and wood put all around it, even as the roots worked as a natural deterrent for a good part of the borders.

"No, just a nice quaint plaza." Sol replied just as quietly as he made his way to the borders. He began to feel around the barricades, looking for any area that might give way to prying hands. Eventually, his fingers found a small section of metal that gave a little. He attempted it, found he could pull it up, and motioned for Alex to head through.

The long-haired guy followed him, trying to keep as silent as possible until both of them were behind the barricades. The area they were in was a converted building's ground floor, having it been turned into a long hallway without exit, barring a couple of small openings that looked more usable as a way to shoot at the people inside the galleries.

After a few steps, a voice stopped them cold. "Well. We have intruders, we have."

Sol turned in the direction of the voice, raised both hands above his head, and simply stated, "Hi there, how are you doing?"

The guard was a punk, thankfully. Maybe in his mid-twenties, the punk's weary appearance was matched by a slight limp and tired and dumbfounded expression. He stared at Sol for a few quiet moments before asking, "The hell you on about?"

Alex rolled his eyes but didn't say anything for a long moment, just studying the Punk. Mohican, black t-shirt with ripped sleeves, a denim jacket covered in patches, and leather pants. It looked like the left leg had been removed at the knee, but, before he could go on with his scrutinizing, the guy snapped his fingers twice.

"Oi, you two are here? You have some problems?" Now, he looked a little worried, but still pretty wary.

"Well… outside the problem of being in hell and being hounded by demons? The nazis are a more immediate problem. We saw Metal Feather face earlier and tried to track it down before its last crash landing." Sol explained.

Sol paused briefly, and looked at Alex, before addressing the guard again. "We're also addressing a uh… bit of information we just found. We were part of separate groups weren't we?" Sol began to lead on before the guard cut him off.

"And what says you're not a fuckin' nazi, eh!?"

"Not much, except for the fact that we're not lily white like them, we're not wearing a bizarre blend of school and military uniforms, and the fact my first action was to try to touch the sky and talk like a normal and sane human being instead of a deluded fascist psychopath?" Sol finished with a question.

The Punk looked at them with a gimlet stare, before sighing. "One faux pas and I'm gonna play bowling with your heads. Follow me, I'm going to bring you to the boss." And, showing a rather extreme lack of fear, he strode forward, passing near both Alex and Sol.

"As long as you aren't nazi, we can at least hear you out." The sentence was tossed behind his shoulder, with a rather lackadaisical attitude.

"Well, that went much better than expected." Sol said, slightly bemused. "What do you think it'll be like in there." He asked as he walked up the steps.

"A trap." Alex deadpanned. And he was proved correct a moment later, after they had gotten out of the tunnel, with seven different people surrounding them. The place was an added balcony, made with stone and wood, clearly taken from the buildings that the Qliphoth had smashed. In the middle of it, there was a bigger guy than the others, with his arms crossed, dressed as a biker, with gray streaks in his hair and a chain around his right arm.

"So, you enter here, spying around, and ask an audience with the boss. What makes you think that you'll be able to just waltz up to him?"

"Honestly, nothing." Sol said with a shrug. "We just wanted to see if you guys were a part of a separate group. We saw you guys fighting with the nazis from a mall a few miles off and figured we'd investigate. You'd be group 3 slash 4 respectively."

"So we're not the only ones that we got summoned in this hellscape?" The biker's eyebrow rose in incredulity before Alex nodded.

"I have a theory about it. Anyway, no, you aren't the only one. We have met personally with another one, beyond the one where me and my friend came with, along with certain knowledge of another one. Feel free to believe me or not, it's not really a problem for me." And Alex crossed his arms, a fairly neutral look on his face.

Before anything could be said or done, a shrill cry began to make itself known, and it began to grow louder and louder until…. The cry became a deafening howl, one that drove every occupant in the room to their knees, as the windows shattered and the building began to experience violent tremors from the assault.

The howl faded but the people inside still clutched at their heads in an attempt to alleviate the ringing in their ears.

"It's that bird!
"What!?"
"The bird!"
"What the hell happened!?"
"I think the building is coming down!"

The voices began to make themselves more clear as the building shook more and more.

"Alex!" Sol shouted not realizing just how high his voice was. "What the hell was that!?"

Alex was on the ground, in a fetal position, his hands covering his ears, an expression of pain on his face. Slowly, he uncurled when he heard Sol's voice, tears collecting at the edges of his eyes.

"The bird we saw before." His voice was barely audible, Be it because he was talking with barely more than a thread of air or because Sol's ears were still ringing. "It was a shriek. Sonic attack of some kind."

"What!? Gah!" Sol shouted aloud, his ears still ringing from the attack before getting Alex on his feet. His hearing might be coming back slowly, but he could clearly see the punks escaping out the back.

"That way!" The group of leather-clad guys and gals ran towards the nearest apartment complex, entering from a fire door that was propped open.

"Stop shouting! I can hear you!" Alex answered, before starting to run behind the Punks, Calcabrina already in his hand, his head turning around like a ball on ice. The cracks on the walls and the floor didn't fill him with confidence in the structural integrity of the building. And considering that both he and Sol were INSIDE the building…

"I'm shouting!?" Sol asked with shock. Then it seemed to click with him as ran to catch up with Alex and the remaining Punks.

Sol could feel more than hear the building shaking as he began to follow along. Something was slamming into the building and he really didn't have to guess as to what it was.

From behind them, one of the windows exploded into shards of glass and wooden splinters, as the giant head of what looked like an eagle mixed with a crow appeared inside. The feathers, the beak, and even the eyes had a rather distinct metallic shine to them. And, if the way the demon's beak had just cratered the stone floor, it was more than just a trick of the light.

Seeing this, Alex ran faster.

Sol took one look and ran like a maniac all the while shouting, "That's a huge ass bitch!"

As if understanding the partially deafened man's shout, Hraesvelgr retreated briefly before slamming itself back into the breach, attempting to get at the humans inside. Each time it did so, the building began to shake that much more.

"Oh, fuck me running." Alex didn't even shout, he just muttered his curses, before putting up one last push of speed, quickly turning right when the Punks did the same and finding the stairwell going up.

Luckily, only until the second floor, where their unwitting guides running out of a window, on precariously positioned wood beams, connected the complex to another one a short distance away. It wasn't high enough to cause problems and there was a pond under it, so it was better than the other choice.

Sol catching up took one look at the beams, flinched as the building shook another time, and roared, "Fuck you feather face!" as he ran out onto the beams. The beams held his weight, but not his balance as he stumbled his way into the other building.

"Insults later!" Alex was already most of the way through the improvised catwalk, but he could feel how much it was shaking under his feet. And a fall from that height, especially with the pond underneath, wouldn't kill either of them, but it would hurt, that was for sure. "Running now!"

Sol didn't argue the point, quickly following behind him as another tremor rocked the area. Hraesvelgr dragged itself away from the front entrance and round its way to the beam structure, slamming head first into the connected building. Sol could practically hear the audible sharpness as its beak repeatedly opened and snapped shut trying to get at them.

The wooden beam snapped under the giant bird's bulk. Luckily, it was stupid enough to look inside the building they were just coming from, not where they were now, sitting still and silent, waiting for the demon to go away.

The Punks were doing the same thing. Sitting against the walls and behind corners, some with their hands on their mouths, to stop any and all kinds of sounds from escaping.

The bird stomped around in the lower area, crying out every now and then, but thankfully not letting out another of those sonic blasts. While they were fortunate to not attract its attention, the weight and strength of the demonic bird were still being felt by both buildings. This led to the understandable circumstance of the first building's rear edifice, the location that they had just escaped from to collapse. The falling brick and mortar fell upon Hraesvelgr, who in response began to thrash around in anger.

The explosive movements resulted in damages to the second building making themselves known and the punks began to flee the soon-to-come destruction. Alex and Sol followed right after, the brick and concrete coming down behind them, almost like a block construction that someone had kicked. Except substantially more dangerous.

Their unwitting guides brought them down, past the first and ground floor, before taking a door to the basement. Once they all were behind it, they calmed down a bit. So did the other two.

"You think… you think, feather face got the hint and flocked off?" Sol asked slowly and deliberately, trying his best to keep his voice as level and low as possible.

"Ouch." Alex answered, deadpanning. "That pun. That was horrible. But I hope so, yeah." Then, he turned towards the Punks, who were now realizing that the duo was still with them. "So, your boss. We were told something about meeting him to prove that we aren't nazi? Which, by the way, I'm insulted. It's not like they would even accept me, even in the impossible case I wanted to join them."

"Yeah? Why?" The same guy that had ambushed them asked, swaggering forward, trying to intimidate the duo. Not that it was working.

"I'm gay, you walking stereotype. Want me to prove it to you?" Alex's answer was accompanied by a sensual smile and a slow bending forward, eyes half-lidded.

Sol couldn't help but chuckle at Alex's challenge to the punks, which drew their attention to him. Realizing this, he stated easily, "I'm not, but I am mixed. Boricua Irish, so I get to enjoy St. Pat's and the NPRDP that much more."

One of the other punks shrugged her shoulders, before nodding. "Eh, fine by me. If you are lying, we'll catch you and kill you later. Either way, you're not going to give any secrets to the Pricks in White." And, after having said that, she moved to the other side of the room, where a perfectly normal closet stood. Opening it, it was also a normal closet inside.

At least, until she pushed something near the bottom and the back panel swung open, showing a metal door. The plaque on it said 'Sewers'.

"Well? Are you coming?"

Sol looked at Alex before saying, "I think we found our entrance further down." Sol took off his, rubbed his ears a bit, and followed after the female punk. She opened the marked door easily and the sound of running water began to make itself known. As he looked through the entrance, he could only remark. "It doesn't smell as bad as I thought it would."

"Because these are empty, as far as sewers go." The same female punk that was now opening the way answered, walking calmly on the sidewalk, the running water in the center. "From what we understood, the place is basically new. Never been used before. And large enough to allow us to walk through it without too many problems." She took the first turn left, before opening a grate that was straight in the middle of the road. "Still, it's not exactly pleasant. Gets a bit stuffy after a while."

"I can imagine." Sol said before looking at Alex. "Maybe this isn't so much like a scene from a memory, but I'm pretty sure sewers are supposed to, you know, smell? Maybe I'm reading too much into this."

Alex elbowed him lightly. "Remember the apartment." And he just walked forward, ignoring the looks of curiosity in the eyes of their momentary companions.

Sol's eyes widened slightly before he clarified. "We spent a few hours, I think, in an apartment a ways back. There was running water, fresh food, the works. Strange thing was, it didn't make sense for it to be there. I've been calling it like scenes from memories, but I'm not sure that works anymore."

"The whole place is a bit like a terrarium or a diorama. Everything looks like it's real and, for the most part, it is. But only on the surface." Alex continued the group of Punks now paying attention to what the duo was saying. "For example, look there."

On the other side of the sewer tunnel, on the concrete sidewalk, there was a crack. A small one, one of those that you see anywhere. It looked old, with edges vaguely rounded down, completely unremarkable.

"It's… a crack in the floor?" The guard punk asked, his eyes swiveling from the crack to Alex and back, like he was watching a tennis match.

Alex nodded. "Yes. But how come there's a crack in the ground when the sewer is basically empty? It makes no sense, realistically, for it to be damaged in that way and that precisely. It's more like… someone had put it there because sewers are places that aren't well maintained and, so, the floor must be cracked."

"And if we look at the apartment," Sol began, catching on. "Apartments are stocked with food and running water, running power. So it stands to reason that they'd be there also. The real question is where these notions are coming from. My best guess is the demon that dragged us all here has to make everything seem as realistic as possible so as to keep everyone alive for as long as possible."

The group fell into an uneasy silence, now looking around like everything they were saying was something new and impossible to believe. Still, they walked.

After a few more minutes, they exited from a rather large pipe, on what looked like a small garden between some buildings. The place was near the edge of the town, right near one of the giant roots that encircled this area, with several people milling around. The most eye-catching thing was the white tent with the red cross on one side and the old man sitting against the wall with a semi-circle of people around him like he was holding court.

"Hello Sir, I'd greet with a time of day but I don't think that's how this place works," Sol said easily enough. "My friend and I saw you all from a ways away and figured we'd investigate and verify some things. Then feather face showed up…" Sol trailed off before repeating, "Then feather face showed up."

The older biker blinked at Sol, before looking at the others. "Who are they? And why are they here?" While his voice wasn't exactly accusing, there was a rather prominent note of distrust in it.

The female guard from before responded. "They claim they're survivors from another group. Not anyone tied with ours. They approached us at the Hyatt Hotel before what he," She gestured to Sol, "called 'the feather face' attacked."

While the group was discussing the situation, Alex was focused on another thing entirely. Specifically, the way some of the group held themselves. Some leaned left or right, others seemed to stand on the ball of their feet or almost like they were leaning back. Also, all of them that were doing this, had a body part completely covered. Even more than just long sleeves and gloves, they had multiple layers on, not showing even an inch of skin.

Sol continued, "Well I have a hard time pronouncing Norse stuff. I think it's actually called Hralgr or something like that. We saw it burrow its way out of the root system and then it attacked your group and the nazis. We both hate them so, figured we'd help you guys take them on until we could find a way down to a lower level of this place."

"Hraesvelgr. Like the eagle that sits on top of Yggdrasil. Considering we have met Nidhogg, I'm sensing a theme." Alex commented all of a sudden, attracting the attention of everyone around.

"Word of caution: if we meet a giant squirrel called Ratatoskr, I'm not gonna be responsible for what I'm going to do." He looked far too serious for someone that seemed to be joking.

Assuming he was joking.

Sol just quipped, "Squirrels are the demons of lawns and gutters everywhere. Whatever you do to it, I'll grab the popcorn."

"Yes, yes. All of this still doesn't explain why you're here. What haven't you started with the nazis?" The Old Biker - Alex and Sol should really learn their names soon - asked, both appearing vaguely annoyed and vaguely amused at the same time. He also reached near his leg to scratch it, bringing to Alex's attention that it was one of the full-covered limbs.

"Well, because we'd rather meet with some sane human beings first, before having to deal with those bastards." Sol said, dropping his smile. "There's something else too. We didn't see you in our group, nor the nazis, and there was a group we encountered at a mall a ways back. See, our group split four ways. There was Alex and I, a group of high school and college sports teams, and rival business teams. The jock group got wiped out by another group we didn't see. Six people with red eyes."

Sol paused and began to sit on the ground before continuing. "Figure there's us, you and our mutual enemies, the mall group, and the red eyes. That's four groups of people brought here."

"I have a theory that there are at least two groups more, but it's just speculation on my part. It doesn't matter right now." Alex added his own two cents, before focusing back on the Punks. There were more people around, now, and even some that got out from the tent at the side of the small garden.

"How's the fighting against the nazis going?" Alex asked, trying to keep the conversation moving.

The Biker Boss looked at Alex for a long moment before speaking. "Better than we thought in some ways, worse in others." He began, hand slightly rubbed at something underneath the fabric of his covered leg.

"They're tenacious and have a taste for blood, but I bet half of them were never in a real fight before any of this went down. They like to gang up on people, get 'em away from their fellows for isolation, and go in for the kill. But match 'em with enough men and women and they'll run off with only a few licks given."

"The biggest bullies around the block are cowards, who would have guessed," Alex muttered, before twisting his head a bit, watching towards the tent, and then back at the boss. "Also, having demonic power lent to them must have emboldened them. I'm assuming that you're using it, too? Well, before you lost access to the statue, anyway?"

The Biker Boss was quiet for a minute before grinning and lifting his pant leg a little. Instead of skin matching his other leg, the skin was blackened with slight flashes of red lines dancing across the surface. The other punks began to lift parts of their clothes all revealing similar, but varying body parts that were decidedly not human.

"The demonic power is a help, sure. But outside of a med-tech or a nurse or two, we don't really have doctors, and sometimes those green stars aren't enough to give you back a limb. So, they take a limb or two from us, and we take something back as payback."

The biker boss gave a venomous laugh before continuing. "That nazi pricks believe themselves to be 'too pure' to even dare taint their precious bodies with better parts. A lot of them aren't around anymore. So we're evened out for now. Now, I'm guessing that looking at you, you've taken a little back yourself." He said looking at Alex.

Alex didn't laugh.

The sound that came out of his throat couldn't be called laughter, really.

"A little?" His voice had gone… high. Almost shrill. Pitched in a way that was a horrible mix between lilting harmonically and grating on the ears of whoever was listening.

He leaned forward a bit, his smile unhinged. "No, I took more than a little. We fought a Geryon, me and Sol. And the demon, when he was dying, decided to break me, as a final fuck you." He was smiling, maniacally, eyes open wide unnaturally. There was a faint aura of power and magic all around him, lighting him up. "Something like a few hundred kilos of demon horse fell on me. All of my bones - or nearly all, the same shit - broke. Broken ribs. Perforated lungs. I got paralyzed. Not that it mattered, I would have died."

Then, as if nothing had happened, he straightened back up and started redoing his ponytail. "Sol saved me. You can use the Statue to hybridize yourself with a demon, if you have the material with you, turns out. Speaking of." He finished with his hair and nodded sharply towards the leg. "How's that demonic flesh treating you? Because mine was poisoning me. It still is, I'm just searching for the right… replacement parts. So to speak." His smile, now, was a thin, sharp thing, only the barest hint of perfectly white teeth shining through his closed lips.

The Biker breathed through his teeth for a moment, his eyes flicking to Sol and seeing the other man grimace. "It's not perfect if that's what you're asking. I get drop foot sometimes, Otto sometimes develops a pretty shitty limp." He said gesturing to guard that Alex and Sol first met.

"Max gets lockjaw, something fierce, and you can imagine the rest… We know we're on borrowed time. We figured there was out and we could get real medical help on the outside. Then those nazi pricks kept jumping us. Yeah, we'd take a few of them out, but they take some of ours."

The Biker Boss leaned back in his chair, "Name's Richie, you said something about helping us earlier?"

"Yeah. We can deal with the Hraesvelgr for you. With the stipulation that we get the rewards. After that, if you have found a red circle, glowing ominously as if it leads to Hell itself?" Alex smiled, this time way more shrewdly. "Well, we can show you something pretty interesting." And, with a lazy, almost casual movement, he twirled Calcabrina in his hand.

Without a word, Sol drew Gevaudan, showed it briefly to the crows, and then let it extend out. "The red portals lead to a bar called 'Gates of Hell'. It's run by a literal fallen angel named Rodin. Good guy, he makes some killer drinks and more importantly, some real quality weapons. I mean really good shit. That's where Gevaudan, this armor, and Calcabrina come from."

Alex nodded, smirking, before the umbrella vanished into his inventory. "Cost quite a bit. But it's definitely top notch. Best demon blacksmith short of Machiavelli himself."

*******************************************************************

"So, we know that Hraesvelgr usually only attacks if someone is passing under the area where the main street is while he is feeding. Beyond that, he remains in his nest. Which is on the top of that building." Alex pointed at the widest building around, nearest to the roots that circled this area of the building, before pointing at the door. "This area is also a sort of dead zone between the two factions, considering that the bird is vicious and none of them, not even the nazis, are strong enough to defeat him. Which is kinda strange, assuming it has more or less the same strength as Nidhogg."

"I'm guessing it's metal feathers." Sol said, looking at the map. "If we could pierce them, we could probably kill the bastard, far more easily." He traced his fingers along the map, stopped, traced it again, and gave a long-suffering sigh. "I… may have a plan, but it's both risky and very stupid."

Alex turned to look at Sol fully. "I mean… considering that Nidhogg basically killed himself, if this one is the same on the intelligence level, I'm pretty sure it can't be that stupid."

Sol leveled a flat look at Alex before saying, "No, it is that stupid. I'm thinking of pulling a Kevin Bacon at the end of Tremors. Piss off Hraesvelgr enough that he chases me to the nazi base. It causes merry havoc there… then we drop a building on its bitch ass."

"Yeah, I stand corrected. Nope, vetoed." Alex crossed his arms in an X shape. "We don't have a way to collapse a building reliably - as in, making it fall where we want it to fall - and we don't know the way from here to the nazi base well enough to not make a mistake in trying to lead him there. Finally, it's a bird. We have already seen that he can fly. Think of something else."

Sol paused, and looked at the map again before saying. "Then we watch it, wait for it to sleep, and collapse its nest building. If we do it fast enough we could prevent feather face from flying away and catch him in the collapse. That'll do some damage… Now how to do it."

Sol paused a bit and snapped his fingers with a look of eureka. "Okay so, same vein of stupidity here, but while we, and by we I mean everyone in this collective room, don't have the capabilities of bringing down the building, they, as in every demon we could attract, might. And Rodin is our man of the hours with discs to do it."

"I hate to be the voice of reason here, but." Alex took a deep breath. "The Punks are still searching for the entrance to the Gates of Hell. We still don't have a way to control when and where the building would fall. AND we don't know if the sounds of fighting will wake the demon up before we are done."

Alex then looked at Sol more carefully. "Is everything ok? You seem to be… distracted."

"... No, no it isn't." Sol sighed. He stared at, but not really looked at the map. "Time's against us, hell we're practically drowning in it, we have a giant metal bird raining sonic death down on whatever it feels like, and fucking nazis have access to a shop and can keep themselves going as long as they can kill demons. By all that's good and righteous, what'd I kill to get my hands on a tank or something and shoot the bird out of the sky."

"Sadly, I'm out of tanks. And I'm pretty sure that Rodin doesn't have one, either. However, there's always the option of going up there and killing that bird personally. As we have seen - and heard - it would prefer to dive bomb us instead of using the sonic scream to kill us from afar."

Sol's eyes widened, "You can float with Calcabrina right? Maybe we could do something with that… maybe we can get it to dive bomb into the building, break its metal shell, and then…" Sol trailed off but made a smacking noise with his fist and palm.

"Floating is not flying. And no, I haven't managed to buy that option yet. Sadly." Alex grimaced, thinking about what techniques he could use once he had the required Red Orbs. "So, that doesn't work. On the other hand, we could just try a simple sneak attack?" He didn't seem too sure, but he didn't have any other ideas.

"That works…" Sol said with a nod, he took a deep breath "Then I guess we hit the nazis after that."

"Yeah." Alex nodded, pointing at the top of the building. "If Richie is right and there's a statue within the nest, we can upgrade ourselves and then deal with the nazis." Then Alex winked at Sol. "Also, how much do you bet that there's a secret mission here? I mean…" He waved his hand towards the empty building. "It only makes sense, no?"

"That's a sucker's bet, let's take a look," Sol said, his mood improving.

"After you." Alex did a theatrical bow, before following Sol toward the building.

*********************************

The place must have been some sort of office building if the way the various floors were exactly the same all the time. Cubicles, break rooms, lots of small spaces, tight hallways that opened on desks in front of bigger offices.

The only thing that they found in their very thorough exploration was one of those Red Orbs deposits on the first floor, hidden in a stall in the bathroom. The second floor didn't reveal anything. Neither did the third.

The fourth, on the other hand…

"Bingo." Alex breathed, his smile enough to stretch his face, the spidery runes on the wall shining dimly in the low light of the corner office that was currently looking on the giant roots outside the windows.

"What challenge do you think it is?"

"Could be a battle room, could be a platforming segment. You ready?" Sol asked.

Alex shrugged. "Eh. I'm as ready as I can be. Hit it."

Sol reached out and touched the runes. The world warped for an instant and the two found themselves in a decently large room. On what appeared to be a track covered in demonic runes lay a complete Purple Orb. There were also two doors on either side of the track and an obvious pressure plate in front of the track.

"I think I know who gets the prize this time… I feel like I've seen this before." He didn't step on the pad but looked at both doors.

"I'm guessing this starts the track and that we have to reach the end before the orb does, or beat each other getting to it." Sol finished.

Alex blinked. "I wonder… What would happen if someone triggered this while being alone? Would this place create a competitor to play against or would it just be a run against time?" He tried to look around and beyond the holes in the walls to catch a glimpse of what he had to run through but with no luck.

"Maybe, but we won't know until we try. Okay, here goes." Sol said, before stepping on the pressure pad. The track started up, and both doors opened. "I'll take the left side and you the right?" Sol asked quickly.

"Sure. Maybe, next time alert me before you start the potentially deadly track!" Alex managed to yell before he started running down the right hallway. "I hate running!" He managed to grumble in between breaths.

The hallway wasn't particularly problematic, beyond the fact that it had several obstacles placed randomly and haphazardly in front of him. He had either to jump them or to swerve around them, which consumed more time than just jumping. Or double jumping, in certain cases.

Sol went into the left door entrance but took the obstacles inside at a slower pace.

Alex, to be fair, didn't really know that. So he just… kept running. Jumping, sometimes just moving slightly to the side, keeping up a steady pace, until he reached the end of the hallway, where the door to the final room was. And a switch.

A few moments after this, Sol reached his side and saw a switch of his own. "Press your switch, see if it opens your door." He called out.

Alex shrugged and stepped on the switch. With a simple click, the door in front of him swung open, showing the point of arrival of the Purple Orb, with another switch in front of it. Considering that the other switch had opened the door, Alex just stepped on that one, too.

A section of the track began to rise and offered the purple orb up. With another noise, Sol entered the room and gave Alex a thumbs-up.

"You know, if you want to use some of the more esoteric techniques and spells, you'll have to use these, too." Alex pointed out, before grabbing the purple orb. Instantly, it melted into his hand, before the air around him shimmered with energy and his presence felt… more.

"True, but you need that more than I do right now, and maybe that extra magical strength can punch through Hraesvelgr's wings," Sol said as the world returned to what it once was.

Sol looked back briefly before tapping his fingers together. "Considering it though, that was pretty anti-climactic. You were probably right, It was probably meant for a single person to deal with." Sol stated with a shrug.

Alex looked at Sol, before nodding slowly. "Or enemies. Kind of like a trap, I guess. I would say that I'm wondering what would happen if one failed one of these, but we have seen what, haven't we?" He was, of course, speaking about the first corpse they had found and where to be more specific.

"Anyway, upward we go. We have a giant eagle to render endangered." This time, Alex's smile could have brought someone to their knees.

Several minutes and quiet sneaking later, Sol and Alex had made their way to the building where they saw Hraesvelgr make its nest. It looked to be a high rise office building, with a heavy emphasis on glass and steel beams. A more 'Industrial' look than what one would normally expect.

Sol checked his handgun and blade before going to open the front door. "So, we get him to dive bomb the building, and then stab at the exposed parts? Sorry about asking this again, it's one thing with fighting demons on the ground. It's another to fight a big demon X amount of flights up." Sol said nervously.

"Yeah, no, I completely understand," Alex answered, pushing himself forward and peeking inside the place. "We need to bring Hraesvelgr down here, otherwise we're going to die just like this." And he snapped his fingers. "So, yeah. dive-bomb and attack. Here's to hoping he's just as stupid as Nidhogg… assuming it's possible, anyway." And he strode inside the lobby, making a beeline for the elevators.

The elevator's doors dinged open a moment later. Alex turned towards Sol. "So, do we take this or the stairs?"

"Might as well enjoy the elevator ride while we can… plus I'd rather not take the DMC equivalent of going up the Shinra Electric Power Company outer staircase. It's always faster heading than up." Sol said before entering the elevator and asking. "You think they'll have elevator music?"

Alex shrugged, before pushing the button for the top floor. "I honestly have no idea. I guess we'll discover in a moment." The door slid closed.

The metal box started going up, and cheery, happy music started playing. It was so opposite to the situation's atmosphere that it made Alex blink and look up with a strange expression on his face.

Sol let out a short laugh before clapping Alex on the shoulder.

"Oh man… hahaha… oh that's… actually kinda catchy." He said between laughs.

Alex looked at Sol with a surprised expression, before he shook his head. "The pressure must have gotten to him." He smirked and patted his head. "There, there. Don't worry too much, I'm sure you'll get better in no time"

"Ah… no man, it's just that it's a funny coincidence that's all." Sol said as his laughing began to calm.

The elevator ride was pleasant for several more minutes until a pinging noise indicated that they had reached the floor just below the roof. The roof access floor was sparse and seemed to have been in the process of either renovation or base construction. There were various building supplies and materials scattered about.

"Okay, well now this wasn't a complete job. Hmmm, not too sure about how well this particular floor looks… maybe more stuff for feather face to crash into?" Sol asked.

"Good question. I'm just hoping neither of us will slam against something exposed. I'm not sure we can get a tetanus shot anywhere." Alex commented, before moving up the short flight of stairs to the door to the roof proper. It was closed, of course, but it was the simple matter of cutting the lock open with Calcabrina to gain access to the outside.

"Ready? I'm pretty sure it's going to attack as soon as we are out there." Alex asked.

"About as much as I can be." Sol said with Gevaudan and his gun drawn.

The roof could have been bare once, but now it was covered in a mess of flattened metal and dried Qliphoth roots. Sitting inside the makeshift nest was Hraesvelgr itself. It looked at the two before standing upright and letting out a challenging cry.

"Uh, change of program. The chicken is already in the hen house." Calcabrina was already in Alex's hands, the tip aimed at the demon. "Now we just need to cook it." A feral grin graced his lips, before he shot a beam of energy straight at the Hraesvelgr, making him shriek in surprise and a little bit of pain.

With an equal grin, Sol began to run along the side of the demon and fired with his gun. He knew that the rounds wouldn't do much of anything but he was hoping beyond hope that one shot would hit an eye, blinding or really pissing it off.

"Come on feather face! Over here! One annoying bug of a human ready to kick your ass!" Sol shouted to get its attention.

He didn't manage to hit an eye, but it pissed him off… Well, that was another matter. It may be for the irritating pinpricks of pain that he was feeling, the sounds, or the shouting, but the giant bird demon turned towards Sol and shrieked, before taking flight in a flap of enormous wings. The winds caused by the aftereffects were enough to send both of them down to the ground.

"I'm seriously regretting this idea right now." Sol thought before trying to right himself and aiming at the sky where Hraesvelgr ascended. The flapping of its wings was drowning out a lot of the noise he could hear.

Still, he called out to Alex, "Alex! I can't see him, how about you!?"

Alex didn't answer for a moment, before pointing at a small spot in the air. "It's coming back. Fast. Looks like he doesn't like people in his nest." He readied his umbrella, energy shining on top of the metal tip, before pointing to the other side of the roof across from Sol. "Run that way! As fast as you can."

His aim was to make the Hraesvelgr miss. A stationary target was easy to hit. A moving one, especially with the relative size between the two, would be much harder.

Sol began to run in the direction Alex pointed out, trusting the other man implicitly.

"Okay, come on feather face, we're right here." Sol thought as he got into position.

Alex kept his umbrella steady, aiming at something that was, for a couple of seconds more, not visible to Sol. Until it was visible. And it was Hraesvelgr, coming back down with all the strength of the hammer of the gods, shining in the sun like gleaming metal.

And his eyes open.

"A bit more… A biiiit more…" Alex murmured, slightly adjusting his aim, the glowing sphere at the tip making it a bit hard to aim properly. Then, once the demon was in range, he shot, the beam piercing through the air and slamming against the beak and eyes of Hraesvelgr.

Now, the spell was a simple beam of energy, so the damage wasn't all that big. But it was bright and irritating and aimed right into the eyes. So, the giant bird lost its trajectory and slammed against the top of the building in an earthshaking impact. The whole roof trembled and several cracks spread from the point of impact.

"Go!" Alex shouted, still keeping his beam on the demon.

"Stinger!" Sol roared out in response. He flew forward and struck Hraesvelgr with Gevaudan. The bone sword didn't do much against its metal skin and Sol was forced to retreat.

"We're going to have to get him to break his skin even more!" Sol shouted out.

"Good idea! But pay-" Before Alex could finish his alert, Hraesvelgr shook his entire body, rising from the concrete of the floor, and flapped his wings forcefully, a wave of pressure and wind sending Alex down on his back and Sol flying away. Luckily, not out of the building, but almost.

Then, the demon rose in the air, wings gleaming, and shot a series of feathers sharp as knives towards the two of them.

Sol managed to right himself as the heavy gusts pushed him back, before seeing the descending feathers. Letting Gevaudan loose, he tried to swat out as many of the feathers as he could. He was successful with some, but several flew too close for him to bat away.

"Gah!" Sol cried out as several feathers managed to create small slashes along his armor. He instinctively grasped at some of the spots, feeling thin streams of blood underneath his fingers. "If I didn't have my armor…" he trailed off before firing at the demon in anger.

"Oh fuck meee!" Alex, on his back, didn't have the time to get up and avoid the feathers. So, he copied Steve Rogers and closed himself in a fetal position, before opening Calcabrina and casting Barrier as a good measure.

The sound of metal hitting glass echoed around him for a moment or two, before the barrier shattered. But the cloth of the Devil Arm didn't break and the attack concluded a moment later.

"Fuck you, you overgrown chicken!" A barrage of bullets slammed against Hraesvelgr, while Alex got up once more, a dark expression on his face.

Hreasvelgr screamed once more and began to circle the rooftop. Angry, the demonic bird began to build up speed with each pass and made its next attempt to dive-bomb the roof.

The continuous circling of the roof made the winds start to twist in his wake, the currents becoming stronger and stronger until it was almost a tornado. Alex had to rapidly remove the blade from the sheath and slam it in the concrete under his feet before he got flown away from the incredibly strong winds.

The windows of the building weren't so lucky or resistant and, with a shatter of glass, sharp shards started flying around.

Sol barely managed to hang onto several pieces of steel and debris, using the weight to hold himself in place.

"Fuck this bird! Fuck this bird!" Sol thought furiously while waiting for the winds to die down.

Before the winds had stopped, the demon rose steeply upwards, wings beating furiously, before turning and falling into a dive, straight towards Alex. It was just by a stroke of luck that Alex saw him.

To be more specific, it was a flash of light coming from the metal body of the demon momentarily shining into his eyes and making him raise his gaze. His eyes widened and, in a panic, he accidentally opened the canopy of the umbrella. The remaining winds were still strong enough that they filled the cloth and, almost as if it was a sail or a parachute, brought Alex away from where he was trying to stay, his blade sliding out of the concrete like a hot knife through butter.

Sol managed to just barely see this, and impaling Gevaudan into the concrete, he let the chain unlink and began to try and quickly make his way to a position where he could reach for Alex to grab his hand.

The screech of the blade against the concrete was ripped away by the weakening winds, but Alex managed to slow down enough to grab Sol's hand. Then, the links on Gevaudan went taut and they stopped moving all of a sudden.

And that was the moment when Hraesvelgr slammed against the roof once more, spreading the cracks that the first impact had caused. He had missed Alex by a lot. It was stunned, but quickly recovering.

They had to act fast if they wanted to capitalize on the situation.

"Come on!" Sol roared as Gevaudan retracted and he charged at the demon. While stunned, Hraesvelgr did manage to turn to the noise in time to see Sol. More specifically, to see the oncoming point of a stinger.

The bird shrieked in pain, throwing its head while blood poured from a deep wound in its face.

At the same time, Alex shot another beam straight at the legs of the demonic bird, making him screech. And then…

Both of them landed on the ground, their hands on their ears, the sound waves reverberating inside their skulls like giant bells, making them cry out in pain.

Hraesvelgr slowly got up, wings flapping violently and sending them flying backward, against the concrete that held the door to the inside of the building, before rising in the air, luckily stopping the sonic attack. Still, both of them were stunned, at least for the next few moments.

Sol's vision swam and the ringing in his ears only served to further disorient him. He tried to stand briefly before falling to his knees.

He didn't know if he was actually speaking or not, but as if on reflex he thought he was. "Come on, just a little more. We can kill you if you just dive a little more."

Alex was swaying like a sailor on his first sea journey, but he was using his own weapon as a crutch to remain standing. Which was more than what Sol was managing. "Come down here and face us properly!"

Then he stopped and the hand that wasn't clutching Calcabrina with a death grip went to his mouth, his face briefly looking very green from the nausea.

Sol managed to finally stand before shakily scanning the horizon. There was a brief moment of lull before he saw the Hraesvelgr and began to fire upon it. "Come on, come on! We're right here!"

"Yeah! Come- OH fuck!" Alex instantly turned and started to run towards Sol. They didn't know if Hraesvelgr had heard them or not, but the demon was coming back down. Faster than the other two times, as the tail made of dust and winds behind him attested. Straight at them.

"Inside! Hide inside the stairs!" Alex shouted, aiming for the door to the inside of the building.

Sol didn't need to be told twice as he quickly ran behind Alex. Perhaps it was the damage from previous dive bombs or damage from the combined attacks of the two humans, but Hraesvelgr's aim was terribly off. It had struck the center of the rooftop, the center of its nest. The structural damages already accrued finally showed their worth, as the rooftop crumbled underneath its weight. The demon bird collapsed through several floors of the building, howling and screaming as it fell.

The metallic feathers that were its armor, began to twist and warp under the rain of falling steel, glass, and concrete. Sections of its feathers began to tear away, revealing pulpy, pulsating flesh. When Hraesvelgr's descent finally ceased it screamed in a newfound agony, its voice rising in pitch and power.

Sol and Alex were not spared from this miniature cataclysm either. When the roof collapsed, the stairwell kept them relatively safe for several moments before the supports holding the stairwell gave way and a section of the floor fell away and created an impromptu slide that they fell down upon. When they finally reached the floor, just shy of Hraesvelgr's new resting place, a section of ruined ceilings collapsed further, striking the demonic bird and causing it to let loose another howl.

"Holy shit, I thought I would die." Alex said, eyes wide and sclerae in full view. Then, he noticed in what situation the demon was and he, almost by instinct, snapped his weapon towards him. "This may be our last chance! Go and hit with all you have!"

A moment later, a beam of energy slammed against the exposed parts of the bird and Alex started trying to pass it side to side.

Sol didn't verbally answer, only lashing Gevaudan's whip at the demon's eyes. The bone blade managed to score a deep cut just above one of the demon's eyes. Blood pouring down, the demon's sight became obscured and it thrashed in a rage.

"Hurts doesn't it!?" Sol shouted before moving along the newly created blindside and slashing at the exposed sections of its body.

This state of things lasted for a few more moments before the Hraesvelgr shrieked, the sound wave sending everyone and everything around him flying away. Rubble on him included. It was now that the human and hybrid could see what had happened to the demonic bird.

One wing had broken, dragging on the ground, while the other was only in a slightly better shape, with most of the feathers bent and covered in dust. All across its body were several deep cuts that sluggishly wept blood.

One thing was sure: they had a good chance of killing Hraesvelgr, as long as the raging demon didn't kill them first.

The demon screamed once more as Sol drove his sword into an exposed portion along its side. In response, the bird attempted to throw its weight around and scrape Sol off its side. Unfortunately for both the wall that it had attempted this on didn't exist anymore.

"Oh fuck! Oh fuck!" Sol screamed as his legs dangled over the edge. As Hreaveslgr pulled back into the building, Sol regained his footing and fired into the demon's head.

"Just die already so we can get on good solid ground!" Sol screamed.

"Hey!!" Alex's voice echoed in the cave-like room, attracting the demon's attention. Well, that and the charged bullet that slammed against the side of the head. "Come and get me!"

And another bullet hit the demon in the face, which turned all of sudden and tried to peck Alex to death, every strike faster than the one before, with the hybrid only staying alive thanks to a frantic series of jumps to the side and, on one occasion, a quick barrier.

As the bird attempted another peck, Sol came around and stabbed at a small section of exposed flesh of its throat. Hraesvelgr's resulting scream twisted into a gurgling rasp. It turned to peck at Sol who ducked underneath the bird and tried to attack its underside.

Another charged bullet exploded against another open part of his throat, making the bird turn again towards Alex. Only to show his weakened side back to Sol, who didn't miss the opening.

That song and dance continued for a couple of seconds more, before the now rather bloodier bird decided that enough was enough and rose upwards and backwards, before screeching, long enough that even the remaining stone and steel around the place started to vibrate from the sound wave.

"Alex, to the edges, quickly!" Sol shouted over the rising, and warbling pitch.

The remaining steel and stone fell upon Hraesvelgr like a rain of shattered arrows and hammers. Each strike seemed to bring the bird further and further to its knees with weeping wounds and dents marring its once majestic features. Hraesvelgr attempted to stand once more only to collapse under the weight of the last of the debris.

It let out a gurgling noise before falling silent, still trying to move out from under the remains of the roof.

The head was peeking out of the rubble and Alex decided to take the chance, perfectly aware that, if Hraesvelgr was in better condition than what it looked like, he would get hurt. Very hurt.

With a dash forward, the canopy of Calcabrina left behind, he plunged his blade into the eye of the demon, to the hilt.

"DIEEEE!!" The shout was pretty uncharacteristic of him, too, but he was panting for breath, red in the face, and with sweat covering his body, along with several scratches and concrete dust.

The head of Hraesvelgr detonated in a shower of gore and steel. With its body finally falling limp, it began to pour a mass of red orbs that filled the room.

"Bout time feather face… Alex! You okay?" Sol asked.

"Never… Better…" He was panting and, a moment later, he winced and put his hand on his side, around the area of his kidneys. "Grab anything you can from the corpse. I'm going to make a weapon out of him if it kills someone. Possibly more demons."

Still, it was telling that he was unwrapping one of those green lollipops that Rodin had given him. Mostly, it was telling that he wasn't as good as he said he was.

 

[Atma]

Tired and still rather dirty from the fight, pieces of Hraesvelgr safely stored inside their own extra-dimensional armory, the duo managed the climb upwards, towards the cratered roof of the building. They did so for a single reason.

"There." Alex pointed towards the edge. Precariously perched on the only remaining intact piece of roof, the Divinity Statue stood under the sun, shining gold. It was completely untouched as if the whole place hadn't been destroyed mere minutes before.

Sol raised his hands before lowering them. "I swear I'm going to develop a phobia for heights once this is done. We are so owed a beer or something stronger when we get back." He sighed before trying to figure out how to reach the statue.

"I want a hot chocolate, to be honest. Liquor is all well and good, but chocolate is where it's at." Alex smirked, before looking at the very narrow edge of concrete that still connected the platform where they were standing to the one with the statue. Edge that was no more than two feet in width at its widest point.

The narrowest point, Alex didn't want to think about it.

"Want me to go first or do you want to go?" Alex asked, willing to go, but exactly eager.

Sol was quiet for a minute before sighing and saying, "I better get this done now. The faster I'm off this roof the better." He unfurled Gevaudan and wrapped around the concrete edge before slowly making his way across. There were a few moments where Sol went stock still. While his face was turned away from Alex, if one was to look at Sol's face, they would have seen that his eyes would be shut tight for several seconds. The only indication of his stress was a heavy breath that came after each stall.

Finally reaching the statue, Sol called "I'm good… I'm good."

"Ok. Keep your hold on Gevaudan steady… I'm going to use it as a rope to reach you, ok? Stay there." Alex put his hand on the blade and, with the lightest touch on the metal, he moved forward, foot after foot, not looking down the building, but only on the next step.

A gust of wind made him clench his hand around the unfurled form of the whip sword that Sol was still holding, blood immediately dripping down both the blade and his palm, but it only lasted for a moment and, with a few quick steps, Alex reached Sol, the wound on his hand already closing back down.

The perk of being a Hybrid, even a failed - for now - one.

"You did the walk first, yours is the honor of the statue. Go on, spend your well-earned Red Orbs. I'm going to be here." He pointed to the corner near the inside of the building. "Sitting. Recovering from having almost fallen several floors. Go on." And he took a few wobbly steps towards the edge of the platform, before dropping down and breathing heavily, head thrown back and face to the sky.

"Alright… be back in a few minutes," Sol said before touching the statue.

As he touched the statue, the white void appeared as well as the various menus.

"Going to go with skills this time, I need to diversify what I can do." The skill menu opened up and Sol began to peruse through the list.

"Right, I'm going to take Beat Rush, Constriction," Sol paused mid-sentence and looked at an option very hard before continuing, "Binding Life and Time Step."

Sol knew these were some costly choices but he needed something more than Stinger and Rush Cut to survive here. Binding life could keep him in the game longer and make sure any healing items he found could go to Alex, provided there was a demon he could constrict with it. He watched his red orb counter drop by 50,000 before saying his goodbyes to the statue.

Returning to the… "DON'T LOOK DOWN, just talk calmly with Alex, then reach solid ground. You can worship the solidness and surety of it later just make it across and you'll be A- Okay." Sol began to rapidly think as he turned to Alex.

"O…okay so I just spent a wicked amount of red orbs getting some very useful skills. So, I'm going to do a reverse of what we did before and Gevaudan's link will be outside waiting for you when you get back." It was clear however that Sol's attempt at calmness was not going as well as he hoped it would have.

Alex slowly got up from his sitting position, before looking at Sol with a worried look on his face.

"Sol… are you Acrophobic? Afraid of heights?"

"I wasn't before, but after featherface nearly gave me the long goodbye, I'm pretty sure I am now." Sol said quickly.

"Makes sense, really. Well, I'm off to empty my wallet." And, with a smile, Alex tapped the statue, finding himself in the usually white gold space. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the default screen shattering away.

"That parasite inside me and Sol is getting pretty problematic. I think we need to remove it as soon as possible… Assuming it is possible." He sighed, before looking directly at the statue. "I pray to you, let Rodin be able to help."

Then, with a bow towards the Watcher of Time, he opened his options. As usual, he didn't look at the items, preferring to go straight for the abilities.

"I think to start with the racial skills I got, this time…"

Geryon Hybrid Powers

• Blink (Move from one place to another without any time in between. Limited to five seconds of movements, only places that are physically accessible): 7.500 Red Orbs
  • Blink 2 (Time of movement is extended to ten seconds): 20.000 Red Orbs
    • Blink 3 (Time of movement is limitless, depending on magical energy consumed): 75.000 Red Orbs
• Time Bubble (Create a bubble of slowed time in front of you that last for three seconds): 15.000 Red Orbs
• Haste (Speed your personal time up, moving faster and doing more things in less time): 35.000 Red Orbs
• Slow (Slow down a target personal time, making them move like they are in slow motion)(Consume Magical Energy): 50.000 Red Orbs

Alex didn't hesitate.

"Blink is a must, that's for sure. Time Bubble, too, too good to pass." He hummed and dithered for a couple of minutes, thinking of taking the upgrades for Blink, before shaking his head and opening the Calcabrina's page.

"Been a while since I checked your skills, uh? I haven't bought you anything yet. Unconscionable of me, really." He hummed a rather famous song while he scrolled up and down the options that he had access to.

• Calcabrina (Combined Form)
  • Float (Keeping the umbrella open it will slow down any fall to a gentle float) - 2.500 Red Orbs
    • Levitate (As long as the Umbrella is open, the weight of the user is reduced to almost nothing. Higher jump, can walk on fragile and liquid surface) - Require Float,5.000 Red Orbs
      • Fly (Glide/flight for short distance with directional momentum chosen at the start of the movement) - Require Levitate, 10.000 Red Orbs
        • Defying Gravity (Unlimited flight, cost Magical Energy) - Require Fly, 300.000 Red Orbs
  • Tar Beam (Only combined form, charged.) (Charge the entire surface of the Umbrella and shoot a giant beam.) - Require Beam Spell to be bought, 25.000 Red Orbs
    • Improved Tar Beam (Can charge the beam for longer. Damage is increased) - Require Tar Beam, 50.000 Red Orbs

• Calca (Sheath)

  • Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red Orbs
    • Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs
      • Impervious (Require Waterproof, Require Funeral March for a Marionette) (Extend the shield further, barrier is strong enough to block any attack once. Cooldown after this use) - 50.000 Red Orbs
  • Puppet Waltz (Require Beam Spell) (Lasers come out of the tassels hanging from the spokes of the umbrella, can be kept active during movement) - 15.000 Red Orbs
    • Funeral March for a Marionette (Require Puppet Waltz) (Calca get thrown up in the air, lasers come down from the tassels and it start turning on itself, the lasers hitting all around in a casual pattern) - 35.000 Red Orbs

• Brina (Sword)

  • Running Stitch (The tip of the sword is charged with magical energy and, on hit, release a thin beam of energy in the enemy) - 8.000 Red Orbs
    • Cross Stitch (Require Running Stitch, Require Beam Spell) (The tip of the sword can now leave behind up to two trails of energy that will shoot forward. Charged) - 20.000 Red Orbs
      • Cross Stitch (Require Cross Stitch) (The number of trails of energy that can be used is now unlimited, but need to be continuously chained) - 40.000 Red Orbs
  • Back Stitch (Require Barrier Spell, Require Beam Spell) (Enlarge the size of the sword by overlaying cutting barriers on it. The size can change from slightly bigger than normal to greatsword size. Weight is unchanged) - 25.000 Red Orbs
    • Blanket Stitch (Require Back Stitch) (Can now enlarge the sword to bus size. Weight is unchanged) - 50.000 Red Orbs

With a slide of his finger, he bought the Float, Levitate, and Flight power for his weapon, all the time looking like he was making an impulse purchase. "Whooops, my finger slipped."

After that, he tapped his lips with his finger for a moment, before buying the Running Stitch power for his blade. "I AM a bit low on offensive options in close quarters, after all."

Right after that, he went back to the general powers and, with the scant Three Thousands Red Orbs that he still had - 3.800 Red Orbs, to be specific - he bought the second level of Enochian Magic, leaving him with only 1.300 Red Orbs, but rather happy.

With one last bow, he returned to the normal world, his umbrella on his shoulder, teeth in full display in a wide smile aimed straight at Sol. "You know, shopping is REALLY nice to do, after almost dying."

Sol, who had made it to the other side, had Gevaudan extended and taught along the edge of the walkway, and called out in agreement. "Oh I agree, makes you realize that battles could have been easier if not for a certain birb and its stupidity."

"Battles could have been a lot harder, too. Remember Geryon?" Alex pointed at himself, before blinking and smiling. "And speaking of Geryon…"

Then he was right near Sol, seemingly disappearing and reappearing near him between blinks of the eyes.

"I got a teleport and a couple of more interesting things. Want to see them?" His smile was, one could say, devilish.

"Maybe when you reached the ground floor? I really don't want to be up here any longer than I have to." Sol said shakily but there was an evident note of happiness in his voice.

"I bought something to keep me in the game longer, myself. So any healing items I get, they'll go to you, until we can stabilize you." Sol continued.

Alex smiled, before taking a step forward towards Sol and throwing his arms around him in a rather tight hug. "That's awesome! Mostly because I want you to live as long as possible, but still! You're a great friend!" Then, he leaned back a bit, a sheepish smile on his face.

"Which is why I'm going to feel a bit bad about what I'm going to do… right now." One of his hands moved from Sol's shoulder to his waist and he tightened his grasp before he pushed both of them away from the edge of the building and into the air outside.

They started to fall before Alex twisted the hand that wasn't holding onto Sol and Calcabrina snapped open. Their fall reached a jarring stop, then turned into a gentle floating down. Like a demonic version of Mary Poppins plus one passenger.

"Ah! What the fuck man!" Sol screamed as the two floated down to the street below.

"I can fly, I can fly, I can fly…" Alex was singing - rather better than when he was a pure human, which was a bit strange, as far as modifications went - while they were floating down.

Sol meanwhile said nothing and kept his eyes shut. He was not a fan of the current situation he was in.

After less than a minute, the two touched the ground and Alex let Sol go without saying anything, closing Calcabrina and storing it away in his inter-dimensional armory. Only once he was unarmed, he turned towards him and opened his arms wide.

"Ok, there you go. If you want to hit me for the scare, feel free, I admit that I deserve it."

"Oh sweet merciful ground, you may be a hell illusion, but I will never doubt your wisdom again!" Sol said to the broken street asphalt as soon as his feet touched the ground.

Alex rolled his eyes, and turned, looking around and letting Sol have his own dramatic moment. He had his own, after all. However, he didn't resist the impulse to chuckle a bit.

"Yes, yes, sure. Want to go back to the Punks and see if they have found Rodin's bar? I kinda want to be there the first time they enter. Their faces must be pretty funny."

Sol quickly got up and stated, "Absolutely and I am buying a beer or something for our troubles. Victory Drink here we come!"

And without another word, Sol began to triumphantly walk towards the punk base, his feet planting a touch more firmly on the ground than they did before.

Alex smiled at Sol's retreating back, before following him, his weapon on his shoulder, whistling a happy tune from a Disney movie.

"I can fly, I can fly, I can fly…"

***********************************************************

The Punks' territory was in full activity. A few more people looked a bit wounded, but nothing bigger than scratches and, in a single case, a split on their arm. The Boss was fuming, however, and he locked on Alex and Sol as soon as they came back.

"You better have defeated the demon bird, because we ended up in a fight with the Nazis while searching for your so-called 'portal to hell'. For your sake, I hope it's worth it." His voice was a growl, the unkempt beard, and hair making him look like a ferocious lion.

Alex shrugged. "Well, considering Hraesvelgr's dead as a door nail, I think it was worth it. What do you think?"

The Boss's face went still for a moment before asking "You're serious?"

Sol spoke up in response, laughter in voice. "Oh yeah, dumb bird practically killed itself through its sonic blasts. Though I think I developed a fear of heights as a result." Sol's voice took a more serious turn, "What happened between you and the nazis?"

"We found the circle you two wanted us to find. It's in that building there." He pointed at a building near the edge of their unwritten territory. "There was a patrol of nazis near there. We fought, they fought, we got out mostly unscathed, they came out a bit less unscathed. But we are running low on restoratives and the nazi have the statue near the top of their tower. So, we are going to be royally fucked if you hadn't killed the bird and restored access to the second statue… Which you did. Good." The last words were clearly a threat.

However, threat or not, neither Sol nor Alex looked scared about it. They appeared almost nonchalant.

"It's precarious up there so I'd watch your step… oh and take the stairs, they're safer," Sol said almost as an afterthought.

"Yeah, definitely. Anyway, you want to see what's like at the Gates of Hell?" Alex asked, chuckling darkly, making a shiver run down the spine of everyone around.

The Boss steeled himself visibly, before nodding. "Let's go."

********************************************************

The first words out of Sol's mouth as he stepped foot in the Gates of Hell were "Rodin! We're bringing you new customers and I would like to order a drink!"

"Something sweet for me. Also, if I give you some materials to make a weapon, how much?" Alex followed Sol quickly, sidestepping the circle that worked as an entrance and made space for the others to pass.

"What?" Rodin didn't manage to say much more than that, before the rest of the scouting party that the Punks had sent appeared. One, then two more, then four, and the Boss all strode out of the circle, before stuttering to a step when they saw Rodin and the bar.

Alex and Sol were smirking, and Rodin was blinking, surprised. Then he noticed the limb replacements.

"What the fuck." It wasn't even an exclamation, just a flat delivery of disbelief.

Sol approached them and quietly told Rodin, "Alex wasn't the only one to take back a body part. Many of them have arms, legs, and other parts replaced. Sorry, we couldn't give you a warning, sir. Been a bit crazy out there.

Rodin didn't say anything, only gave a long look at Sol, before shifting his eyes towards Alex, who was smiling sheepishly. On the surface. On the inside, he was clearly enjoying having managed to fluster - even if only a tiny little bit - the ancient being.

"Yeah, sure. Take a seat while I deal with the other customers." The admonishing look he gave to Alex was ignored, while the duo sat down at a table, waiting.

******************************************************

"So, how much business do you think we just gave Rodin?" Sol asked while looking at the crowd of punks exchanging Red Orbs for various weapons.

The flow of red went on for… a while. "I'm guessing a lot. A lot more than recent times, anyway, considering how empty this place had been the entire time we were here." Alex waved his hand towards the area around them.

Alex was right in his observation. The survivors that made up the punks were buying various weapons from Rodin at an alarming rate. This ranged from pre-made devil arms to creating new ones based on various body parts that they had had on their persons upon entering the bar.

There was also a not so small degree of warnings given by Rodin about the nature of hybridization, the potential health problems that it was going to eventually lead to, and the method of fixing them through complete hybridization. The punks took it well enough. There was some cursing, slight arguments, and attempts at bargaining but there was a general consensus of what they needed to survive.

Which was good, Sol thought to himself. The punks weren't a bad crowd per se. They were just caught up in the madness like the rest of them.

"I wonder if Rodin's going to give us a finder's fee for all the customers we brought him." Alex mused, resting his chin on his hand. "I hope so. I don't have nearly enough Red Orbs to make a new weapon and I want one really badly, even if I still need to master this one." He was, of course, referring to Calcabrina. "Having more options is never a bad idea, after all."

"I'm going to be honest, he better. That's a lot of people we just brought in. That both weapons, drinks, and anything else Rodin has…" Sol trailed before looking at Alex.

"What do you want to do with those parts from Hraesvelgr anyway?" Sol asked.

"Hoping for another Devil Arm. Something with a good AOE, to diversify a bit. Calcabrina is all good and well, but it's not all that good in a group, as you have seen." Alex twirled the umbrella in his hand, before making it disappear back into the inventory.

"Well, I think you have gained that." Rodin appeared from his position at the bar, now that the Punks were busy drinking and showing each other what weapon they had gotten. "So, I'm gonna offer you a free weapon and… let's go with 10 Thousand Red Orbs each for the customers you have brought me."

Sol was silent for a few moments, his mouth opening and closing. "Thank you! Ummm… I … we weren't expecting that but again thank you!"

"Yeah, it's… Honestly, it's great. Since we're talking about weapons…" Alex shrugged and let the materials that he had taken from Hraesvelgr - basically everything from the throat down on the table. And the ground. And the booth near.

The punks fell silent a moment later, watching with surprise the giant bird parts just… lying there. Especially because Alex, no matter how behaved, always had that feeling of being a good boy, one of those that never broke the rules. It wasn't as true as it looked.

"Can you use this? I know it's not the most powerful thing that we have met, but…" He shrugged again. "I think it would work well with something that uses sound. Or something. You're the smith, I'm trusting you."

Rodin looked at Alex with an inscrutable look, before nodding. "I can whip up something. Wait here." The whole parts vanished before Rodin himself disappeared in one of those red magic circles.

And the bar fell silent.

Sol turned and looked at the punks before easily saying. "He killed it, he can do what he wants with it. Besides, you all should have seen how he pulped its head." Sol said with a shaky laugh before turning to where Rodin had disappeared. "Any chance we can get those drinks before you work your magic?"

A couple of glasses, filled with smoking liquid, appeared in front of them. Alex nodded towards the bar. "Thanks!"

Then he took his cocktail and started sipping it. "Persephone's Kiss. How… Appropriate."

"Hey," Sol said as gestured to his glass. "Kinda tastes like pomegranate."

"It does." Alex smiled and sipped his cocktail, ignoring the punks. They were looking at the two of them with a more… wary look, now that they had demonstrated something they could do.

***************************************

After Rodin had given them the weapons they had required - Sol had giggled like an idiot while swinging Vendetta around and Alex wasn't really far behind, twirling his new weapon like a majorette's baton - and they had returned to the Punks' territory, both of them opted to ask for a room to sleep in. And maybe a place to take a shower.

"Before you go." Richie stopped them with a few words. "I want to know how strong you really are. How about sparring with one of my boys?" He gestured to one of the Punks who looked like he didn't have any kind of prosthetic.

"Do you really think that's a good idea? What if someone gets hurt in a bad way?" Sol asked before gesturing to himself and Alex. "I mean we've just been trying to survive, there was never a need for that."

"True. But, from what I understand, you two have mostly fought against demons, not humans." Richie waved his hands towards the tall tower where the nazis had made their base. "Humans and demons fight differently from each other. As for wounds, don't worry about it." He pointed at the large white tent that Alex and Sol had seen when they had reached the Punks' base. "We have a doctor."

"Okay… well… we're not getting out of this are we?" Sol asked a nervous edge to his voice.

"Not a chance." Richie said with a grin.

"Well, fine by me. I'm not one for unnecessary fighting, to be honest…" Alex proclaimed, although everyone around him was looking at him with disbelief. "But it does sound like a spar could be a good idea. But I do want to take a shower later. So. Which one of you wants to spar with me and who wants to spar with Sol?"

"I'll take the armored one." One of the punks said. Emerging from the group was the punk that Sol and Alex had first met when they had arrived at the punk's initial base. His limp was a little less pronounced than before but what drew Sol's eyes was the large scythe that he had propped on his shoulders.

He looked at Sol briefly before fully introducing himself, "Sol, yeah? Name's Romero."

"I hate to say it like this, but are you sure you want to fight with that limp?" Sol asked.

Romero smirked, "Trust me, I haven't lasted this long without getting used to it. Let's go."

"Alright then." Sol responded, not quite sure of how to handle the situation.

"Then…" Romero suddenly kicked the ground, soaring above Sol, his scythe already extended and aiming for his shoulder, his grin bloodthirsty. "Let's start!"

Apparently, his limp wasn't as big of a handicap as it looked like.

Without conscious thought, Sol raised his pistol and Gevauden across himself to block the scythe. The weapons caught the blade's edge and before Sol could react, Romero kicked down into Sol's forward-most leg. The strike sent Sol to the ground and Romero used the momentum to launch into another attack. Descending downward, Romero aimed at Sol's back. Sol dodged to the left and the scythe carved a deep gash into the asphalt below.

As he rose, Sol unfurled Gevaudan and wrapped around the scythe's handle, attempting to pull it away. The two struggle for control briefly before Romero leaped again. The loss of ground contact made Sol stumble briefly, losing the grip on the scythe. As he came down again, Sol began to back step and released Gevaudan again. This time the bone whip wrapped itself around Romero before it constricted around the punk. Before Romero could react, Sol pulled and the punk was sent forward to the ground.

The sudden movement winded Romero and as Sol moved forward with his gun, Romero kicked up again, this time angling his bound scythe towards Sol's neck. Sol while managing to raise his right gauntlet and Gevaudan's handle to block the blade only served to bring the scythe blade closer.

"Enough!" Richie shouted, halting the two. If it had gone on any longer, Romero's scythe would have easily found Sol's neck, and Sol's gun was aimed directly between Romero's eyes. Both men were panting greatly, and Romero began to smirk.

"Not bad, but you're not as strong as you look."

"No… But I haven't been juicing or grafting body parts… yet." Sol responded before tilting the gun up and slowly releasing the hammer. Unwinding Gevaudan from Romero, Sol took a step back.

"You could have attacked me more during our fight. Fired that gun of yours too." Romero said as he adjusted a screw on the scythe.

"Too many people around, couldn't risk a stray shot." Sol said quietly.

"Well be prepared too, those nazi bastards won't hesitate to kill you. So next time just pull the damn trigger." Romero said sharply

Alex didn't say anything, but he kept his gaze on Romero and Sol, as he had done the entirety of the fight. His grip only now was relaxing on the handle of his blade, still sheathed inside the umbrella.

Seeing that the two of them were cooling down, although both of them were breathing heavily, he took a couple of steps forward, patting Sol on the back. "Congrats on your win. So, it's my turn now, right? Who's gonna fight me?"

The smile that he was wearing was rather thin, but it wasn't some kind of threat or anything. It was just his resting face: a Mona Lisa smile.

"I'll take him." A female voice called from the crowd. The woman who stepped out of the crowd had for the most part the typical punk look. However, aside from the obviously enhanced physical characteristics, it was evident that there had been serious changes to her body just under the skin as made evident by the blackened veins that crisscrossed across her more visible sections.

She took something from her back and placed it in front of her. It was a golden wheel, beautiful in its creation and work but still an evident tool of murder. She leaned forward across and batted her eyes at Alex.

"What do you say? Think you're strong enough for me?" She asked with a coy smirk.

Alex looked at her, before starting to chuckle, until it turned into a full-on laugh. That… didn't help with the woman, whose expression soured more and more, until she grabbed the wheel and shot forward, fury etched on her face.

"Don't look down on me!" The golden wheel described an arc in the air, coming down on Alex. The cloud of dust that rose from the titanic impact obscured the visual of everyone for a moment until it stopped.

Alex wasn't there anymore. Instead, he was standing where she had been a moment ago, his smile on his face, but he wasn't laughing anymore.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm not looking down on you, I promise. I was just amused by your attempt at seducing me. You see, I'm gay, so… You cannot distract me like that." And he shrugged, even going to put his hands in his pockets.

Her face twisted in anger before she shouted, "Well someone should have fucking told me before I showed OFF!!!"

The woman lunged forward at Alex, swinging her breaker wheel across her body in an arc. In mid-swing, part of the wheel disengaged and swung out further increasing her reach.

Alex didn't move. He didn't even take out his hands, really. And yet, the weapon never reached him. A bubble of gray air appeared in front of him, grabbing the weapon and stopping it in mid-air, uncaring of the strength or the momentum. After all…

When someone told time itself to stop, anything else was meaningless.

"Well, this is Strike Two. Go for the third attempt, let's see if you can do better." Yes, he was provoking her. But that was because she was clearly easy to provoke and, the angrier she got, the easier it was to see how she would attack.

The woman tried to wrench the breaker wheel from the time bubble before pausing and taking a breath. As she did, the blackened veins seemed to darken in color, before she turned to Alex and adopted a boxing pose. Without a word, she lunged forward and unleashed a series of jabs and crosses against him.

Alex disappeared again, but she was ready, this time, and turned on a dime, already punching towards his probable point of reappearance. She was right, but he was just a little bit faster, reacting with a magical barrier made of interconnected magic circles covering the entire front half.

"Well, you adapted way faster than I thought. Congrats." Alex half bowed, showing his respect for her, the Time Bubble vanishing and letting her weapon fall on the ground. "I think it's time for me to counterattack."

The weapon that appeared in his hand was not Calcabrina, but what Rodin had just made for him. "And this is the perfect situation to try my new weapon. Thank you, really." He was smiling wider, now. Before the staff in his hand started glowing a little.

With a snarl she pressed forward, moving around to Alex's off-hand side before…

"Uh!" She gasped for a moment as her leg locked itself in spasm. The sudden stop halted her momentum briefly, causing her to fall forward at an off-angle. Mid-fall, however, she leaned further in, pressing her hands against the asphalt and using her strength to launch herself forward into Alex.

Alex would have been surprised by her sudden recovery, but the constant situation of danger, the fights against demons, and the bosses had taught him a lesson: no matter what, don't give your enemies any chance.

He twirled the staff like a baton, the ribbons and strings of pearls echoing like bells in the air, before he slammed the butt of the weapon on the ground, the fan of feathers at the top opening slightly, the air making the vibrate.

"Seraphim…" At his name, the gem on the top of the staff - It was made from the heart and the larynx of the Hraesvelgr, a sort of core that housed what power Rodin could recover from the corpse - shone brighter. "...Sing!"

The woman was near enough to hit Alex with her punch, but a wave of vibration - it was sound, pure sound, so strong that it was basically a physical wall - slammed against her and sent her tumbling back. The ground under his feet cracked in a radial spread all around Alex, the air booming from the attack.

A moment later, he had blinked near her, the sharp tip at the butt of the staff aimed at the throat of the woman, his smile firmly in place. "Want to continue?"

She made to get up and as she did so, her arm spasmed, causing her to fall down once more. "Dammit, not yet. It's not over yet!" She shouted as she quickly rose and flung out her spasming arm.

"Maggie! Enough!" Richie shouted over the crowd. The name, 'Maggie' drew her ire immediately before she clutched her arm to still the slight tremors. With a glowering look, she trudged over to her breaker wheel and tore it loose from the time bubble. She didn't bother to look at Alex, instead, her eyes were locked firmly on Richie as she went back into the crowd.

"Don't ever fucking call me Maggie!" She hissed as she left.

Richie watched her leave before sighing. He approached Alex before looking back. "Don't mind Mags. She hasn't had the best of times here. But then again who has?"

Alex answered with a wide and empty smile. "Not me!" Then his expression returned to normal, Seraphim in his hands.

"So, what about that shower?"

Sol removed his helmet before asking. "Wouldn't mind a chair to have a good sit down while we plan our next move. Would you all mind if I do?"
The Punks all around were now suddenly much more wary of Alex and Sol, considering that neither of them was fighting to kill. So, they were guided to an empty building where they could sit and take a breather. Or a shower.

And a few hours of sleep, considering the amount of time since the last time they slept.

****************************************

The edges of the map, a paper one, were ruffled, with a few heavy paperweights keeping it flat. Richie pointed at a drawn line on it.

"This is the edge of our territory. The tower is here…" His finger stabbed a point where there was a small x made in gold. "And the nazi's territory covers more or less from the line to this point here." Another line, this time in black, that marked the place where the roots were.

"They have been trying to expand during these last days. Pushing and pushing without stopping, especially after they got their new armor." The expression on Richie's face was a thunderous one, but a smirk replaced it soon after.

"Now that we have access to some weapons ourselves, though… They are gonna taste the concrete!" A rather loud cheer came from the other Punks around him, while Sol and Alex kept studying the map.

"You were the first other group that Rodin met outside of us, which means…" Sol taps the location of the nazis on the map several times. "Which means that they only have the basic equipment and armor from the statue."

Sol looked at Alex before looking at the rest of the crowd. "One of our first meetings with Rodin, he lambasted me for wearing, what was it Alex, 'cheap armor only there for looks'? Maybe I got that wrong, but you guys get the point."

Sol brandished Gevaudan. "We have better weapons and armor than they do. We're stronger than they are, and you guys have already bled them a lot."

"Assuming that they haven't found something like an upgrade item list or something, anyway," Alex muttered, before looking down at the map. "How many of them are there? If it's a precise number, that's good, but even a rough one works."

Richie hummed for a bit before one of the Punks whispered something in his ear. "In this camp, we are around fifty. Three died since the start. I know for sure that four more of the people who appeared with us were killed by demons. The rest are the nazis."

Alex nodded. "So, around… what, fifty-five? More or less. Not as good as I hoped, but it is what it is. Do you know when they tend to attack? Morning, noon, or evening? Night?"

Richie took a moment to think before responding. "Whenever the clocks read morning or noon. They'll only attack in the evening hours if they're desperate. They won't fight in the night. Demons tend to come out more around those times."

"Makes sense, I don't want to deal with hordes of demons while tired, either. So, have they attacked yet today?" Strictly speaking, there wasn't a 'night' in the city where they were. But according to Richie and his group, there was a dark period, when the light of the sun was obscured by… something big and slow. That tended to rain demons down, for some reason, and it only seemed to happen in this area.

Yeah, neither Sol nor Alex knew how or why this occurred.

"Not yet." Richie's answer made Alex nod again.

"Ok. Do you know where they are going to attack?" Alex asked.

The boss looked at the map for several moments while placing his finger on a portion of the map. It was a building almost right next to the roots and the boundaries of their expansion.

"That was the location where we last had our last big fight, just before the bird destroyed our first major headquarters. It's an apartment complex. That means lots of food, lots of general materials, clothing, you know, everything one could ever ask for. Now the area is exposed which means they have an easier time getting in and looting. We could trap them there, prevent them from getting out, and get rid of them entirely."

"Would it work? How good are their weapons and armor? You said something about them, right? What did they look like?" Alex asked, gazing at the map like it contained the secrets of the universe.

"Usual things we'd pull off the street, blades, bats, cudgels. Think the most impressive weapon was a shotgun or two. Dangerous as hell you know, but…" The boss taps his replaced limb with a smirk before continuing. "Armor was mostly medieval stuff too, though it seemed their big wigs got that stuff. The rest were in the white uniforms with red patches. I think the physical enhancements are the only things that have kept 'em around this long."

Alex sighed in relief before Richie frowned.

"Although…" His expression turned pensive, while his fingers started tapping on his leg. The bad one. "Some of them seem to have gotten a new set of armor. All white. With helmets and spears. Apparently, they can make them appear from nowhere like you two do." His frown was more than expressive enough to show Alex and Sol what he thought about that power in the hands of literal nazis.

"That might be a problem. But, we have better weapons than they do for the most part. So… So, I guess if we win the numbers game so to speak, and gang up on the armored ones or just get lucky, that issue will resolve itself. And who knows, maybe you guys could salvage that stuff for yourselves and use it going forward." Sol stated, taking in Richie's words as he did so.

Richie nodded, and that was that.

************************************************

The group that had gone with Alex and Sol to the cratered apartment building was composed of ten people. The reasoning was that the nazis never moved in groups smaller than three and bigger than twelve for… some reason. So, with the addition of Sol and Alex, they were enough to deal with any group one-on-one.

That was the plan, at least.

Sadly, you know what they say about plans and men and mice.

The ambush Punks were hiding in the remains of a flat in the building, waiting and observing any possible entry into the apartment building until one of the sentinels hurriedly alerted the group that they were coming.

Indeed, a group of ten people, all dressed in white and holding what looked like long-swords or zweihanders were walking towards the building. Their stride was full of swagger and confidence, even when one of their members was something like sixteen to seventeen. Oh, he was tall enough to pass for older, but the way his face was still soft with baby fat made his age all the more apparent.

"Well it's an even playing field." Sol said quietly, as he checked his gun. He doubted it would do much to an enhanced person as it normally would but he figured it'd do some damage if up close and personal. Clicking its safety off and drawing Gevaudan, he spoke once more.

"I figure we hit them hard and fast, that way we take a few out and help anyone else out if they need it. Cool?" He asked the rest of the group.

The Punks nodded, their new weapons ready, while Alex looked out of the window first. "How do you want to do this? Shock and Awe, Fake Wanderer, Stealth Run?"

"Well, turnabout is fair play after all. Kinda wish we had some big-ass stereo so we could shock and awe with some Ballroom Blitz. Beggars can't be choosers I guess." Sol stated absentmindedly.

"Yeah. Unless there's a boombox or a stereo around here." Alex stopped and looked back at the Punks, who were suddenly pinned under his gaze. "Is there a boombox or a stereo around here?" His question was normally curious, but all of them seemed to freeze.

One of the punks made a face, "Damn!" She hissed, "I knew we forgot something!"

Sol smiled at that, before schooling his features. "Guess our blitz has to be accompanied by our voices and arms." He looked back at the nazis. The group of ten had just begun to enter the building, while also trying to remove some of the rubble for easier access. Sol would have referred to that as removing 'ankle biters' or materials that would always seem to trip you up.

"They're focused on clearing the front entrance of rubble. Everyone ready?"

"I suddenly have Genie flashbacks. Any chance you're going to yell Geronimo! or something while jumping out of here?" Alex asked, Calcabrina already in his hands, while the other Punks looked unsure of what to answer. Well, beyond two that were trying to not fall into laughter, their shoulders shaking and a hand covering their mouth, even if everyone could hear their muffled snickers.

"I mean now that you mention it…" Sol trailed off before pausing, putting his pistol and Gevaudan away, and drawing Vendetta. "Time to emulate our boy, Brooklyn."

"Okay, operation Aladdin in 3, 2…"

*********************************

Neil was a believer through and through, but that didn't mean he enjoyed moving blocks of broken bricks and asphalt away. They shouldn't be doing this, this wasn't their job. This belonged to…

He was so caught up in his own musing that he didn't notice the sound of footsteps getting closer behind him until it was almost too late.

"Geronimo!!!" A voice shouted and he turned to see a man in blue armor swing something in his direction. Neil instinctively brought a large brick that he had just been picking up to protect himself, only realizing at the last moment that he should have gone with his sword. The brick shattered under the strike and while he was cursing his decision, Neil's last thought was.

"That's a big sword."

*********************************

Sol struck down as hard as he could, letting Vendetta's weight and sharpness do the work for him. He had made it halfway across the street before picking out a target, a guy whose back was to him. The man tried to block the strike with a large brick, but Vendetta broke right through and lodged itself in the man's head. Sol stopped for a moment, realizing what he had just done, before taking a breath, pulling the massive blade out, and bringing it back down. He could deal with crossing that line later, right now he needed to keep it together and help the others clear the building.

"No Quarter!" He shouted with a shaky breath while holding Vendetta above himself.

"Arapaho!" One of the older punks threw himself from the first floor's window, the heavy club coming down on the second nazi in the area, who managed to twitch out of the way. Twitch, because he definitely didn't avoid the hit, as the bones in his left arm were broken almost instantly.

"Navajo!" The second older Punk charged from the other window, a mallet that looked like it belonged to Harley Quinn in her hands, the side that tried to splatter another nazi's head filled with spikes. Sadly, the group had managed to recover from the surprise and was regrouping back all together. At the very back, the one that looked like the leader of the small band.

"Activate your armor! Don't let them-grk." The blond, officer-looking guy choked on the blade that had suddenly appeared from his throat, severing his spine and pushing all to the front. A movement and the blade was yanked to the side, revealing the funereal face of Alex from behind the leader.

"Pocahontas." His voice was as grave as the tomb, no matter what he had just said.

With two of the ten dead and one grievously wounded, the front entrance and foyer became a sight of chaos. Sol, steeling himself, had charged the nazi that dodged the spike mallet earlier. His strike sent the other directly into the path of the mallet's follow-up. The spiked mallet didn't miss this time, and the nazi's head detonated in a shower of gore.

Sol dismissed Vendetta and drew Gevaudan in its place, in order to not get his blade caught on anything within the interior.

In the meantime, the attacked nazis started to… change. Plates of white armor started to appear on their bodies, as helmets made of the same material, but with a strange, halo-like attachment on the back of the head, covered their faces. The swords in their hands turned white, too, alongside growing in length, while a small, circular shield appeared on their off-hand, a cherubic face on it.

Alex took a step back, his face an expression of shock. "Bianco Angelos?"

"So some of Agnus's work found itself in their hands huh? Well, that armor won't save you all from us. It's 10 on 7, we got this!" Sol shouted as he released Gevaudan and sent it towards the nearest Pseudo Angelo. The wearer blocked the strike with their sword only for Sol to constrict it and pull them forward. Dismissing Gevaudan mid-pull, he summoned Vendetta again and swung. The swing sent the Pseudo Angelo skidding across the floor. At first, Sol thought the wearer had tanked the hit. However, as the wearer got up, Sol noticed that they were clutching at their side. He couldn't see the wound from that angle but the heavy stream of blood and the gurgle in the voice told him that Vendetta had bitten deeply.

"A useless fuck like you won't stop us… Gah! We are the pure, we are the future!" The wearer shouted, struggling as they did so.

Sol readied Vendetta, before stating "And your future ends here."

"Listen to my friend there." Alex lazily answered as he twirled his umbrella, before pointing at the group as a whole. "He knows what he's talking about. Not like me. I'm just your garden variety homosexual."

That was enough to stun them for a moment, as they didn't expect anyone to say that to them. Then, Alex smirked.

"Well, your usual homosexual with a magical laser beam." And, from the tip of the umbrella, a beam of magical energy shot forward, sending the group skidding back, while the demon-human hybrid moved his attack from side to side.

While Sol focused on his opponent, the rest of the punks descended on the Pseudo Angelos in pairs of roughly two each. Sol's Angelo made to turn and help their fellows but was stopped by Sol's voice.

"Your fight's with me, and if you are as pure as you say then you could take me easily right?" Sol said in a low voice but audible tone. The Pseudo Angelo seemed to growl under his helmet before charging at Sol. Sol's opponent opened with a fast thrust, and as if on an instinct he didn't quite realize, Sol Time Stepped aside. The world slowed for a brief moment, long enough for Sol to reposition himself and strike down at the sword. The sword held but was driven into the floor, and Sol followed through with a horizontal slash that the Pseudo Angelo dodged under. Before Sol could react, he felt a sharp kick into his knee and was forced into a stumble. Turning he realized that Pseudo Angelo had retrieved their sword and was readying it for the next strike.

"C'mon asshole, let's get this shit done!" Sol hissed.

The Pseudo Angelo growled, before jumping upwards, a round shield firmly attached to his wrist and sword's handle safely held in both hands. He slammed into the ground with the strength of a meteor, cracking the concrete and sending a small shock wave all around him.

Seeing this, the others started doing so, trying to escape the beam that Alex was still using to keep them pinned near the Punks.

"Scatter!" The hybrid's shout was loud enough to be heard above the cacophony of the combat, at least for those who needed to hear it. Either by diving or rolling away, the punks avoided being hurt by the falling nazis. Well, hurt too much.

"Coward!" Sol roared as he rushed his retreating foe. The nazi realizing what was coming rose their shield in defense. Vendetta wedged itself deeply into the demonic metal and Sol actually took a moment to relish in the sound of the nazi crying out in pain as the blade bit into their hand. That moment ended when Sol felt a sharp pain bit through his arm. As he had struck the Pseudo Angelo, so too did the Pseudo Angelo strike him. Their sword, already weakened from the previous clash, snapped off, with a large portion of demonic steel lodging itself deeply into the exposed part of Sol's left arm.

Sol bit back the cry of pain, and with great difficulty, ripped Vendetta out of the shield, Time Stepped backward and thrust forward. The Pseudo Angelo couldn't jump away fast enough, and took the blade head on… directly in the abdomen, dropping their blade in the process. With a shout masking his pain, Sol pushed forward driving the angelo into the wall behind them. Upon impact, the blade sank further, releasing a torrent of blood. In a last desperate act, the Pseudo Angelo's uninjured hand shot up and closed around Sol's throat. There was a moment of struggle between the two before Sol scrambled for his gun and leveled it.

Seeing what was coming, the nazi tried to push the gun away with their injured hand and Sol fired. The first few shots bat the hand away while remaining struck the helmet at point-blank range. At first, the shoots didn't do much, merely denting the articulated metal, but soon enough the rounds began to pierce it until eventually the head of Pseudo Angelo snapped back and the hand around Sol's throat relaxed its grip.

"Retreat!" One of the armored nazi shouted, after seeing that three of their forces had died and several more were already wounded. "Retreat! We need to alert the Gen-" And then he fell silent.

A bubble of gray had enveloped him, while Alex stood there, the tip of Calcabrina tapping on the concrete, his head cocked to the side. "So, your leader calls himself a General. How.. quaint." He was, of course, acting, as he didn't really behave like that. But, as the saying goes, fake it until you make it.

"What do you think, friend of mine? Leave one of them to go back and alert them that they aren't going to survive our coming?" His voice had turned vaguely lilting, almost like a cantilene, before Alex smiled grimly. "Well, if I don't change my mind, anyway."

Sol wrenched the hand free from his neck before taking several breaths and rubbing at his throat. When he looked at Alex, his response was in a distant and pained tone.

"We can't… we can't let them go back… they'll… tell, fuck!" Sol bit out clutching at his arm, in pain. "They'll tell the others what we have and what we can do. We gotta make this quick."

"As you ask of me." Alex was definitely acting, as he made a mock bow that made his duster flare outwards, before getting up. The gray bubble vanished, letting the nazi inside drop to the ground before he slammed the tip of the blade against the joint between the neck and the head.

It yielded under the Devil Arm, cutting the throat of the nazi in moments. The remaining six nazis took a step back.

It didn't help them.

Alex was in front of them, umbrella in his hands, the blade swirling in a quick arc, sending splatters of blood against the ground. The moment after…

He was at their back, the tip of the blade already pushing against the armor of the back most nazi. Which then exploded, his Running Stitch skill charging the blade enough to send him flying forward and bowling his companions like pins.

Sol took another breath, swapped out Vendetta with Gevaudan, and tried to desperately ignore the noise of a body sliding down from a wall, before looking at the punks and pointing them towards the six survivors.

One the nazis had skidded close enough to Sol, where he forced them back down with his foot. They clutched at Sol's leg before he drove Gevaudan down on their neck. Sol closed his eyes and twisted the blade, feeling and hand that was gripping his thigh slacken and fall to the floor.

The punks wasted no time in falling upon the remaining nazis. Their armor might have been effective in keeping them safe in more favorable conditions, but after repeatedly getting hit with the force of a magical Mac truck courtesy of Alex, their armor couldn't hold under the blows of eight demonically enhanced people with a bone to pick.

Alex didn't say anything, he just stood there. Motionless. Brina sheathed once again, the canopy of the umbrella closed and tied together tightly. A faint, fake smile on his face. A Mona Lisa one, even.

And yet, if someone were to observe him closely, they would have been able to see the minute tremor of his hands, his knuckles white on the handle of the weapon. His arms and legs had an unnatural stillness in them, denoting that he was keeping them locked together like steel bars, probably to not collapse. Finally, his smile and eyes…

His smile was fixed in place, without the natural motility that came from the true ones, while his eyes were empty. He seemed to be looking at the carnage, but he wasn't, not really. He was just looking in that direction.

Sol walked up next to Alex, his gait slow and heavy. He stared at the carnage briefly before turning away. "I feel like I'm about to throw up." He said simply. He was still holding his arm, his hand the exposed part but not touching the sword shard that was still embedded there.

"We'll raid this place for everything that it's worth, raid the bodies for their armor and weapons, and just… just rationalize it all." Sol finished quietly.

Alex's answer came without him moving his lips. "I'm feeling bad that I'm not really feeling bad. Like there's something inside me that's saying, 'What's the big deal? They are only human,' And it makes me want to puke."

"I understand that. These weren't demons… pieces of human shit sure, but they were human. Now… they're just…" Sol trailed off before shaking his head.

Rolling his left shoulder in discomfort, Sol continued, "I wonder if that's how demons really see us? Just, meat and energy to be used and discarded?"

"I don't know. I'm still human inside, no matter how many parts of my body are demonic." Alex's answer didn't help alleviate the fears that both of them were feeling. But was there really something that could alleviate those fears? That, the more you fought with the monsters outside your body, the more the monsters inside were going to eat at you, at your sanity and morality, until all that remained was just another monster wearing the skin of a human?

In the end, the two companions stood there, watching as a mix of old and young Punks, all with a replaced limb or body part, beat to death the remaining nazis.

And, like a choreographed explosion, the corpses vanished, leaving only red orbs that started swirling around, going to those that had helped kill them.

Sol felt the red orbs for a moment before giving a soft sigh. With his good hand, he lightly punched Alex in the arm to get his attention. "Think about Dante man. He was born with it all and despite some seriously unhealthy dietary choices, he turned out alright. Although, I wouldn't mind getting some of that particular biology. Eating pizza all day every day sounds like a dream… Or, think of yourself as a would be Naoki Kashima, body of a devil, soul of a human. Just don't cut deals with blondes who have heterochromia." Sol said with a shaky laugh that didn't convey any real joy.

Alex barked a short laugh, surprised by what Sol had just said. "Be it a tall gentleman with blond hair or an elegant girl with a white sundress, uh? While I admit that I often used Cyphre as a surname in fiction, I'm not that foolhardy to do so here." The smile on him was now looking a little bit realer. "Still, I'm… I don't know where I would be without you, Sol. Thank you."

"You're welcome brother, hell I'd be dead several times over without you knowing my fucked up luck. So anything I can do or say to keep spirits up, I'll do. No matter how silly it is." Sol responded in kind, legitimate joy peaking through his voice.

"Awww, how cute! How disgustingly human!" The voice came from behind them. It was utterly unremarkable and plain. It held a faint tone of fake sweetness, like that old aunt you only met once per year at a family reunion. It was like molasses was poured directly into their ears.

And all that completely failed to mask the utter disgust that filled it to the brim.

The two turned around as fast as they could, only to be met by a man who looked like an office worker: immaculate shirt, leather shoes, black suit, black tie. Even his black hair was cut short and typically styled back.

The only things that marked him as completely unnatural, were the black whip in his hands and the burning eyes that were glaring malevolently at them.

Red Eyes.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So, I had some personal stuff to deal with over the weekend, and over the last few days, I was going through final checks and time got the best of me.

Now, later today I will start posting Sol and Alex's shop and skill list for a better understanding of what is available. Not everything, because... things are about to go down.

 

[Atma]

Sol's good arm rose instinctively, his gun aimed right at the red-eyed man.

"Everyone, get out of here! We'll hold him off. Go!" Sol shouted to the punks. They responded quietly by grabbing as much of the armor and weapons as they could before leaving through the opening.

"Ah, the imperfects. They'll, like you, have their place in this world." The Red-Eyed man said in an insultingly warm tone while looking at Alex. His eyes flicked to Sol briefly before returning to Alex. "Leave the human, baggage."

Alex blinked. Then blinked again. "Can you repeat that? Maybe in a way that makes sense?" While his words were… not polite, but adequate, his tone was anything but.

The Red-Eyed man grimaced a bit before his expression smoothed out. "Ah, yes, a remnant of your previous… state. Very well. I will explain." His tone, in contrast to Alex, was incredibly nasal and uppity.

The Red-Eyed man began to squat down, dragging his coiled whip across the ground like a cat, before raising it and pointing it at Sol. As he spoke, he began to slowly point the whip at Alex. "We were like this fool. Uselessly human, living meaningless lives and grabbing at scraps."

In an explosion of motion, he stood up. "Then we were pulled here, and it was like an epiphany! A calling from an angel with blackened wings! We could become so much more, we just had to kill, to hunt. Yet there was still something holding us back, a last remnant of the weakness that plagues us in the world above." He paused, a hellish sneer blooming on his face.

"No matter how much power we gave ourselves, we would never reach the high of the demons of yore. Our… human forms would always be there as a reminder. And then it happened! Our leader, the one who set us on the path of strength, lost his eye to a demon! A stupid, simple demon took it from him. Well, he couldn't have that, no… He plucked out its eyes and took them for himself. An eye for an eye, and then it became clear to us. The only way to shed our weakness was to shed our old bodies. Haha! Don't you see!?" His gaze now boring down on Alex.

"You're already on the path of power, an imperfect blend of majesty and chafe! Shed your humanity from your body and become greater than anything else you could have hoped to become!" He shouted, arms spread wide and the whip began to slowly unfurl itself.

Then he looked back at Sol. "Take him for example, weak and hesitant. Oh, I saw there was some fire in you, but you choked up on the first kill of these wastrels and their little toys." He looked back to Alex, "Like I said before, leave the human, he's just baggage."

Alex, once again, blinked. Then…

"You do realize that you killed demons to take part of their bodies as a human before hybridization, right?" Alex pointed out, unsure if his words would be well received. "Also, What do you mean by shedding my humanity? I'm already doing that. Exhibit one." He finished as he tugged at his tri-colored hair before asking sharply. "Or do you mean me to join you and your merry band of murderers?"

"You could join us or fight us, it doesn't matter. Either way, your life will give us proof of strength. What I mean is to finish it." The Red-Eyed man hissed. "Nothing to hold you back, the full body of a demon is the only way to go forward for power!"

Alex would have blinked again if he wasn't just staring at Red Eyes. Full-on staring, without even blinking. In complete silence.

That went on for long enough that even the Red Eyes was starting to get a little bit creeped out. "What?!" He snarled, suddenly on the defensive.

Alex just shrugged. "Look… What do you want me to call you, by the way? I can't keep referring to you as Red Eyes in my head for much longer before the words start losing any kind of sense."

There is a quiet moment that seems to stretch far longer than it should before a truly furious look blossoms across the red-eyed man's face. He took a breath and steeled his expression.

"Allan, that's the name I was given." He stated, his voice strained and angered.

"I just asked what you want to be called, not what your name was. I'm not an asshole that's going to dead name someone, be them because they are trans or because they have decided to throw their humanity away and turn into a demonic entity." Alex crossed his arms and glared at Allan. "Now, are you fine with me calling you Allan or do you want to be called something else?" He asked again, pointedly.

"Do names matter? In this world only strength and the legacy that carries their worth!" The Red Eyed man shouted.

"I didn't realize that you shed your manners along with your humanity." Alex's reproach was dry and on point, something that someone would say to a child who was throwing a tantrum.

"Oh don't tell me you care! Manners are just a nice way of reminding our old selves of our place in the world. Here? They have no meaning. Strength is the only measure of worth here and demons are the only things worth a damn!" The Red-Eyed man hissed.

Alex's expression turned into a frown, before smoothing out in a placid lake that was cold enough to freeze the air around him.

"Fine by me. Then, Allan, here's what I think about your philosophy." The way he had hissed his name was cutting enough that Allan should have started bleeding. "Taking parts of the demons to gain their powers, I can understand. I did it to survive, the Punks did it to replace what they had lost, I don't see anything wrong about it. I'm not a religious fanatic or one of those nazis that are in the tower. But discarding your humanity in pursuit of a higher power?"

He scoffed.

"Don't be daft. The most powerful demon after Sparda was one of his sons. A son that he had with a human woman. That son killed Mundus, before killing the second one, I don't even remember the name. Then he killed a fake savior that had the power of Sparda. Now, that was a whole other mess…"

"You mean Argosax? Oh and don't forget Abigail and Lucifer." Sol said, his tone trying to be light.

"Yeah, those too, and you know what the kicker is? The final nail in the coffin of your piss-poor excuse for a life philosophy that falls apart if you think about it for more than ten seconds?" Alex took a single breath before continuing. "He did all of this by embracing his humanity. By crying, by being defeated, and by helping other humans rise above their station. He rose above countless trials by forgiving and moving forward, no matter what."

Alex sneered at Allan. "So, do me a favor and go fuck yourself somewhere else. I'm not in the mood to deal with your fanaticism. Shoo." Alex finished as he waved his hand like he was dismissing an unruly cat.

Allan was silent again, but where he didn't verbally speak, his body spoke for him. Any part of his body that was exposed, bulged with veins that moved like serpents under his skin. His face strained itself as his eyes flared with open fury until an unseen boiling point had been reached.

"THEN DIE WITH YOUR VAUNTED HUMANITY, YOU IMPERFECT SCUM!!!!"

With his roar, he cracked his whip and two bloody portals manifested revealing new demons. Their red and white undulating skin and flaming scythes clearly identified them as Abysses.

ALLAN GRABACER – PERFECTED DEMON HYBRID SCOUT ​

And, while two demons didn't sound like much, Abysses were demons that made it count. A lot.

Alex smiled thinly, before a metal staff with a feathered top was in his hands, the long ribbons that trawled behind it dancing in the wind.

"Seraphim, sing!" The area around him - and the two demons that had tried to rush him - were blasted by a wall of sounds that turned everything into rubble.

Sol fired his gun at Allan who easily batted the bullets away with his whip. "Useless!" The Red Eye shouted before calling out to the two demons. "Get up you bags of blood, and kill this pest! I'll deal with the other."

Before Sol could say or do anything else, the Abysses surged forward, singed from Seraphim's attacks but only a little worse for wear. They were on Sol nearly instantly and he was doing everything in his power to fight defensively.

"Don't try to interfere. The red orbs you and that hanger-on have will be put to better use once I kill the two of you!" Allan roared as he charged Alex.

Alex smiled, but it was more of a baring of teeth than a real smile. "I believe you." And then, it was a fight.

Allan's whip came down on where Alex was standing the moment before, only to hit the cracked concrete, shattering it even more. Then, the Red Eyes was sent careening forward, his back feeling like he had been hit by a truck going full on the highway.

Alex was at his back, Seraphim in his hands, a flinty look in his eyes. He wasn't smiling anymore.

Allan spun, bringing the back of his hand against Seraphim, and attempted to strike at Alex, whip wrapped around his fist like a demonic knuckle duster.

Meanwhile, Sol fell back further and further into the lobby. He was tiring, and he knew it. The Abysses were relentless in their attacks and Sol was forced to move to the collapsed floors, trying to get the high ground as much as he could, using Time Step to eke out a few moments of precious time.

"Come on Alex, kill him, kill him quickly!" He shouted slashing at the closer of the two Abysses.

The metal of the staff slammed against the hand of Allan three times at quick speed before Alex had to Blink away from him, reeling in pain as a lance of fire coming from Allan's eyes struck him.

"I'm trying!" His answer to Sol was quick and hurried, before he Blinked away once more, gaining some distance. Then, pointing his staff towards Allan, he unleashed a beam of energy that the Red-Eye answered with another ocular fire lance, the two forces colliding in mid-air in a brilliant and terrible display of demonic power.

In the meantime, the Abysses had changed their attempts at killing Sol. Now, instead of going all out against Sol, they were darting towards him, trying to strike him a couple of times with their scythes, before going back, like two cats playing with a mouse.

Sol realized it shortly into the change With a snarl, he activated Time Step again, and again just to get something, a second or two of breathing room, a chance at the very least of survival.

*Clang, Clang, Clang*

He batted away more strikes but could feel the blades grazing his arms and legs.

"I don't want to die." He thought.

*Clang, Clang, Clang*

"I don't want to die!" He thought frantically as he watched the two demons move in tandem, watching their scythes bob and arc. A wild idea came to him and in a moment of desperation, he activated Time Step once more.

"I don't want to die!" Sol roared. Dodging a scythe, he came up on the side of one of the Abyss' and held it in front of its fellow, mid-strike. The burning scythe buried itself deeply into the chest of the Abyss and Sol half-stepped backward before swinging Gevaudan at the impaled Abyss's neck. The demon's head came off cleanly, and for a moment, a brief moment Sol felt hope. It was dashed almost immediately.

The remaining Abyss swung upward, pushing Gevaudan and Sol's sword arm high and opening his guard. Sol tried to raise his gun on instinct before the Abyss swung down. The world momentarily went white, and all the sound became muffled… Sol could hear something in the distance, a small, shrill howl cutting through it all.

"ahhhh!!!"

The world moved slowly, and his arm felt weird. Why hadn't the Abyss attacked him yet?

"Ahhhh!!!"

He looked down briefly and realized that his left arm was missing at the elbow. Small flickers of flame licked at the stump. The noise began to become clearer and Sol realized that it was his voice. His voice screaming in pain.

"AHHHHH!!!"

Sol howled in agony as he fell backward, collapsing down the broken remnants of the building before landing in a bloody heap. Still screaming, he never realized that his severed arm and gun flew into the air and clattered to the floor below next to Alex and Allan.

The Red Eye sneered before attacking Alex again. "Like I said before! He's human, just baggage!"

Alex wasn't listening to Allan. Sol's scream had rent the air apart, a bone-chilling sound that made him lose any kind of focus he could have on his enemy. He turned, his hair arcing behind him, the speed and suddenness of the movement making his hair tie fly away.

"SOL!!" His voice was raw and filled with emotion, his eyes wide and almost unseeing. He had lost his sight of Allan, his weapon vanishing back into his inventory in his grief.

That was his mistake.

A spike of pain hit him, the whip that the Red Eyes was using turning into a long spear, impaling him from behind, straight through his kidney and out of his bowels, around the navel.

"That's what human trash brings you!" Allan's glee was almost palpable. Alex wasn't listening to him. He was transfixed on what was happening. The Abyss, behind Sol's prone form, was raising his scythe once more, this time aiming for his head.

Alex didn't think anymore. He just… disappeared.

Blinking forward, Brina out and impaled the Abyss's head, before slashing away three or four times, ignoring his wounds. Once the Abyss had completely lost his head, Alex dropped to his knees, his hands hovering above Sol's shoulder.

"Sol! Sol, answer me! Try to stay awake, you can't go to sleep!" He was pleading and he didn't care how he looked in doing so, tears dripping down his eyes. His friend was more important.

Then from behind, Allan's transformed spear had found his heart. Alex's breath hitched and he turned his head to the side, only to see Allan sneering at him from above.

"Die like a human, then." Even now, the Red-Eyed man was so assured of his superiority and disdain.

Alex… blinked. Once.

*******************Alex PoV**************

I was in a featureless gray plain. There was nothing to see, in all directions. Just gray mists, gray sky, gray land.

A blink more and there was me in front of myself. The me of before the Geryon, before the Statue, before being abducted by a demon with dreams of grandeur.

"So, that's how we die?" Human-Me asked, looking at me with a sort of… resignation. His words were said in a quiet, almost placid tone, his expression neutral. I looked at him.

"I don't want to die." My words were visceral. The Human-me in front of me nodded.

"I know. I wouldn't want to die to that madman, either. Considering." He shrugged. I nodded. It made sense.

With the sound of clopping and a deep, demonic neigh, the Ancient Geryon came, from my left. Human-Me moved a bit to the right so that he was farther away from the demonic horse. When it stopped, they were equidistant from me.

"I'm guessing you know what this is, right?" His question was not a question at all, as it was pretty clear what he meant. I nodded anyway.

"You do know that you haven't been using your abilities to the max, right? The way you fight, the way you move… It's still human. You are not human anymore."

He was right. And yet…

"I'm not completely human. Yes, I took demon bones and a liver into my body, that is true, but I still have a human heart and mind. I'm not going to renounce what I was for what I became."

That seemed to surprise Human-Me, an expression finally appearing on his face. "Why? While what Allan said was horrible and the way he said it was absolutely offensive, he wasn't completely wrong. Demons are stronger, demons have magic, demons are free."

I frowned. "And? Demons don't have friends. Demons don't spend time reading or watching movies, or playing video games, or talking, or doing anything that isn't either resting or fighting. A pretty bleak life, if you ask me."

Human-Me smiled. "So, I'm going to assume that you aren't going to discard me to embrace demonhood fully, then?"

I shook my head. "Not on my life."

Human-Me, then, just shrugged. "Half-demon it is. Now, to be clear: you DO know what this whole trip inside your head means, right?"

I nodded. "I… have a rather good idea, yes." The Geryon neighed, showing teeth that definitely weren't the ones of a herbivore. On his back, something that looked like a Bianco Angelo, but with a strange, haze-like quality, appeared, bowing his head to me. Human Me sighed softly and walked the few steps that separated him from the horse.

"Then, let's go. Think of wings, it's cooler that way." His hand touched the flank of the horse, the armored hand of the Bianco Angelo covering his own a moment later.

Silver light made me blink.

And I was back.

**********************Third Person PoV***********************

When Alex returned to his body, Allan was kicking the still-present corpse of the Abyss, a scowl on his face.

"Stupid pieces of trash! Useless! And you are some of the strongest demons? Bah! Not even managing to kill a human…" His last word practically dripped with disdain.

The spear was still in Alex's heart, the muscle trying to beat even with the metal piercing it through. Anyone else in his place would have been dead. Any other human in his place would have been dead.

Sol, in his place, would have been dead.

Alex wasn't a human. Alex wasn't Sol. Alex wasn't anyone else.

Alex was Alex.

His left hand grabbed the spear from the back and tugged it up, the shaft smoothly sliding out of his body. The wounds left behind bubbled and closed over, leaving smooth skin behind, and no sign of the previous injury.

Then, he got up. The movement was stuttered, like an old VHS tape that missed some frames: Alex went from kneeling on the ground to standing up to grabbing his weapon and turning towards Allan. The Red-Eyed man was still kicking the Abyss's corpse. It was only the metallic clank of his whip spear that made him turn to see Alex.

"How are you still alive?!" His shout bounced from crumbling building to crumbling building, his eyes wide in surprise and shock. While Alex spoke, he didn't answer the question.

"I'm GOinG to KilL You nOw."

His voice wavered and jumped around, the pitch changing randomly before he took a step towards him. Allan, feeling a jolt of fear, unconsciously took a couple of steps back before the whip spear returned to his hand.

Steeling himself, Allan roared. "You couldn't kill me before, and you won't kill me now!" With a powerful thrust, Allan charged forward, the gleaming tip of his weapon aimed at Alex's head. Only, Alex wasn't there anymore.

"I cAN. i WiLl. I am DoINg it NOw."

The voice came from behind Allan. However, upon facing Alex, Allan noted with horror that Alex's face was now hidden by what looked like bony scales, that rapidly covered his form. There was a burst of power that sent Allan skidding backward, and that dreaded and when his eyes found Alex's form once again, dread wormed its way into his heart.

Alex's head looked like he was wearing an incredibly sleek and slim helmet made of bone, with grey glass-looking material covering his eyes. His body was covered in scales that were so tiny and interconnected that looked like shiny leather, including boots and gloves, tipped with claws. Behind him, two leathery wings opened, throwing a black shadow on Allan's terrified face.

"How did you!? Only Zeke can do something like that!" Allan cried out.

"FaNCy THat! EmbRaCIng HUmanITY heLPEd!" Alex's laugh was chilling, making Allan shiver down to the bone. Then, a blade was suddenly in his hand, shimmering and shivering without rhyme nor reason, there for a moment and gone the next.

"Now Die."

Allan turned to run, only to stumble. The next step brought his leg forward but left everything beneath the knee behind. His attempt to bring his weapon up only brought up a stump, the hand, and his whip falling on the ground. The other arm was cut at the shoulder.

He opened his mouth to shout, but Alex was there a moment later, a finger on his lips to shut him up as Brina was driven into Allan's heart one, two, three times in succession before it was removed and drawn across Allan's neck.

A moment later, Alex was back where Sol was, a hand on his shoulder and the other hovering above his wounds. Behind him, Allan's head fell free, thumping on the ground. For several seconds that mouth moved, silently cursing Alex. It was a testament to the Red-Eyed man's augmentations that he was still alive, even if it was only for a few more moments. Until a bullet made of silver energy slammed against the head, pulverizing it.

"Sol? Sol, can you hear me? Can you stand? We need to reach… The Statue, or Rodin or... or... I don't know. I'm... I can't think. Please, Sol, answer me. Don't leave me alone." His voice was not distorted anymore, but it was… pleading. Quiet. Subdued, almost. Desperate.

Eyes wide, and body trembling, Sol's right hand had wrapped itself around the stump of his left arm in a vice-like grip. Beyond this, the only thing that showed there was still life was the fact that Sol kept muttering the same phrase.

"He took my arm, he took my arm, he took my arm…."

The flash of light that signaled Allan's absolute end dragged enough of Sol's consciousness back to the forefront to be vaguely aware of his surroundings. He tried to move, to brace himself on both arms only to collapse. The pain from the light fall shocked him that much further. He rolled onto his back and screamed in agony, before beginning to mutter incoherently, half-formed and thought-out questions intermixing the screams.

"Shh, shhh, sh. It's fine, it's fine. Look, he's dead. I killed him." Alex was still covered in that strange armor, but his voice had stopped doing that strange shifting tone of voice. "I killed him and his demon. The one that took your arm. Look, he's there. I killed him for you. Please, stay calm, ok? It's… It's going to be ok." His words were still hurried and his hands were hovering over Sol, almost as if he was afraid of touching him.

"I killed him. I can't.. God, your arm… I can't.. The.. it's cauterized, I.." His head - as his eyes were covered by the strange, helmet-like growth around his head - swiveled around in a panic, before landing on the still-present corpse of the Abyss. A corpse that still had two arms and was slowly vanishing, starting from the feet.

"I can get you a new arm. Like Nero, yes? You like Nero." Scratch the previous situation: Alex was going into hysterics.

Sol grew still for a few seconds, his dazed eyes slowly turning where Alex was looking. Slurring and muttering he spoke.

"Took my arm… I'm… I'm going to take its… I'm going to take its..."

"Yes, sure, whatever you want. Let me help you." Alex's transition from standing near him to him supporting Sol upright was instantaneous and, as almost all of his movements since his transformation - his Devil Trigger, to be perfectly clear - like someone had skipped some frames on a video. The moment before, Alex was hovering near Sol as his friend was slowly trying to get up, the next Sol was up, while Alex had an arm around his shoulder and was basically keeping him up.

"Here. Can you stay up? I can… Let me…" Calcabrina appeared in his hands before he wrapped Sol's hand around the handle. "Use this. As a cane, I mean. I'm going to… I'll fight. Don't worry, ok? You just. Stay up. Give me…" Alex said before clipping forward, halfway to the Abyss, and then back, his arm around Sol, the other hand, dragging the corpse of the demon with him like it weighed nothing.

Sol gazed at Alex before smiling dumbly. "You… took... a Tin man armor? That's some... poemmy juste right there… let me... my own" He said before shakily raising Gevaudan and slashing down. It wasn't perfect, and Sol wound up falling forward, taking one of the Abyss's arms off halfway up the bicep. Sol stabbed Gevaudan into the ground in an attempt to steady himself before bringing the arm to his stump. Sol looked at the limb like a deer caught in the headlights, turning the limb over several times before looking back at the body. "This is a right arm… Give me my... left... arm back." Sol muttered to the corpse before dropping the limb and grabbing Gevaudan again.

"This time I'll do it… right." He gasped, before hacking at the proper limb. The cut wasn't clean but it was serviceable. The exertion however seemed to take on him and Sol fell once more.

"Just… just have to find a statue…" Sol muttered in a daze.

"Sol, Sol, stop. I said I'll take care of it and I will, ok? Let me…" Uncaring of the blood that he was getting on himself, Alex linked the Abyss' arm to Sol's stump, noticing - much to his relief - that it was a bit longer than it should have been. Sol's cut hadn't managed to hack away at the right point, so out of it as he was.

Deciding that he could adjust the length once they were near a statue, Alex grabbed Sol and moved him to a fireman's carry, letting him hang on the arm. The Abyss corpse was still in his other hand and he didn't let him go for… some reason.

To be fair, he wasn't really going on all cylinders. He had probably just forgotten about it. Still, like this, he had a way to move faster than walking or running.

"Calcabrina! Fly!" The umbrella shot away from Sol's hand and started moving towards the position of the statue, passing under Alex's feet. He jumped and, a clipped movement later, he was on the weapon, flying towards the Watcher of Time.

"I'm gonna bring you to the Statue, don't worry, ok? I'm going to bring you there. And you'll be fine. You'll be fine."

"Yeah sure… just flying high and touching the sky… " Sol mumbled.

"Later. When you have your arm back. You'll touch the sky, I'll bring you up there, I promise…" Alex was rambling, as the helmet-like thing on his head started to vanish. He was going fast, his flight far faster than what he would normally be able to do, but desperation and his first transformation pushed him forward like a drug.

The helmet was the first to fully vanish. Then, the gloves went away. The sleeves, the entire upper part of his transformation.

After three minutes of desperate flight forward, the entire thing vanished and Alex stumbled on the ground, barely managing to turn just enough to take the impact instead of Sol. Cracked concrete and rubble would have broken a few bones if it wasn't for his supernatural body. And still, it was his own body that was betraying him right now. The pushing of his powers to a mature state before they were ready, entering Devil Trigger, and then expending his energy without care was playing merry hell on his organs and nerves. It was only the incredibly powerful regeneration that came with that state that had managed to keep him standing for so long.

Now that he had used all the energy just to reach the intersection before the nest, where the Divinity Statue was located, his transformation undid all of a sudden and he was back in his mostly human body. His mostly human body couldn't withstand the amount of demonic power still in him. Alex howled in pain, as his kidneys began to rapidly fail. His hands dropped everything he was holding on the ground and he hugged himself, curling in a fetal position. And yet, through gritted teeth, Alex struggled to a standing position. With what could only be described as a Herculean effort, Alex grabbed Sol and the Abyss's body and carried them that final distance. Going as far as to ignore the fear of crossing the lone beam leading to the statue. Just as he reached it, his vision swam as pain took over his consciousness. As Alex's vision faded, he felt himself collapsing against the statue.

*******************************

For the last few minutes, Sol's world was filled with pain and confusion. Something had changed. The haze that had been present since... since... had begun to lift from his mind. Sol quickly realized that he was in the familiar white void belonging to statue. He rolled himself onto his knees, attempted to stand, and fell, before fully realizing the extent of his injuries. Where his left once was, was a golden, translucent version that he could feel but couldn't move. It was like last time, like what happened with that damn horse. And lo and behold, what lay next Sol, but a demonic arm slowly sizzling and fading away.

Sol stared at the arm for what felt like an eternity, before using his remaining hand to grab it. Holding the limb toward the statue, his voice hissed, as his frame shook in fear. "You know what I need to do… I have the orbs. Let's just get this over with!"

The menus opened up and Sol gestured to the hybridization. A part of him wanted to go with a perfect fusion, but he had a feeling that Alex needed the intact parts more than he did at this time, and selected Imperfect Hybridization. He watched his Red Orb Count drop by 75,000 and the Abyss's arm flew out his hand and overtook the golden mimicry.

Sol expected pain, but he didn't realize just how painful it would really be. The Abyss arm began to worm its way onto and into him, twisting and spasming as it did so. It felt as though a blinding and burning cold was rushing from his left arm into the rest of his body. He screamed and dropped to his knees, not noticing how the arm pulsed and surged, first rapidly expanding and contracting before shortening in length to match his original arm. It pulsed for a few moments longer before its fingers began to curl and twitch. With one final cry, Sol blacked out from the pain and collapsed into a heap, heedless of the new limb.

Only then Alex did manage to move enough to act a little. The pain hadn't subsided, but he had grown accustomed to it, at least enough that he could distinguish what was in front of his face. And it was hard to mistake the area where the Divinity Statue stood supreme.

"Sol… He...I need… To…" Looking around with as much energy as he could use, he finally noticed the body handing off him and his friend, sprawled on the ground, a new crimson and white-clawed limb where his left used to be.

A huge weight that he didn't think about vanished from his shoulders and a few tears dripped down his eyes, relief etched in his features.

"You're ok. You're ok. You'r-gh!" A lance of pain made him stop, and he had to keep on breathing for several minutes before managing to regain control over himself. He could feel himself grow nauseous by the second, his limbs shaking as his heart began to beat, louder and louder in his ears. So, he turned towards the Statue.

Perfect Demonic Hybridization (Kidneys): 75.000 Red Orbs or Imperfect Demonic Hybridization (Kidneys): 35.000 Red Orbs.

It was not even a thought passing through his mind before he chose the first option. The corpse of the Abyss near them shuddered, convulsed, and then, in streams of liquid light that looked like blood, streamed from the demon to Alex, perforating his body at the kidneys. He shrieked in agony before his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Fainting from the pain, and dead to the world, neither of the two noticed the approaching figures converging on the statue.

***************************************

Awareness came to Sol slowly. He was aware he was being dragged and more importantly, he could feel his left arm. Someone had him by the wrists.

"Al… Alex, thanks for…" He was cut off as he was backhanded. It shut him up and woke him up fully.

"Shut it, you trash!" A voice, a male voice shouted before someone else, a woman, spoke up.

"That's enough, he's more valuable than you are at any rate."

"You bi!.." The voice shouted again before something happened and Sol felt himself being thrown across wherever he was. When his vision cleared he realized that he was familiar with the female voice. It was the businesswoman from his group and she was different, very different. Her pantsuit, while obviously tattered, showed off her body. He'd have been attracted to her if not for the obvious look of insane cruelty that danced across her eyes and… the blood of the male speaker that was splattered across her side. Sol's eyes looked to the ground and saw a white-clad man with a familiar armband slumped on the ground, his head pulped.

There was someone else with them too, another nazi who took one look at the carnage and ran.

The businesswoman snorted before easily grabbing a piece of rubble and launching it at the fleeing nazi. It smashed into the back of their head and the nazi dropped to the ground, still. "Cowards honestly, can't take the heat when they need to. Not like us. Look at you! You and that.. other one, whatever the hell his name was. You and he were survivors, and now with that arm, well…"

Sol cut her off as he got to his feet. "What the hell do you mean by 'were'?"

The businesswoman laughed, "Ahahahaha! I can't have you taking all the demons and red orbs for yourselves. Besides, I want that arm of yours." With that, she threw two items down, Vendetta and Gevaudan. Sol picked them back up with shaky hands, staring briefly and with no small degree of horror at the undulating crimson and white patterns that danced across his left arm, before meeting her eyes.

"Now! Let's see how you do!" She shouted, raised a massive stone club, and swung it towards Sol.

CASSANDRA STEVENS: DEMONICALLY ENHANCED HUMAN ​

*********************************

When Alex woke up, he was in a cell. Dark stone, a small sliver of a window high in the wall, chains on the walls - that luckily weren't wrapped around his wrists - and a small door made of heavy wood and metal barring his way.

From the small opening in the upper part of the door, a couple of eyes and a little bit of face could be seen. Icy blue eyes, cold, arrogant, and devoid of anything resembling empathy.

"So you are the one that has the secret to reaching perfection? I can only see a pathetic wretch, but I did also see your transformation." His voice was cold in tone, although his accent could be called somewhat alluring. "No matter. The Leader commanded me to be sure that you won't escape, so you won't. And, once you have told us what we need to know to rise above the masses, your utility will come to an end."

Alex coughed, before, slowly, getting up and looking at the door. He didn't say a word for a long moment, before he croaked something out, his voice dry and raspy.

"You are one of the nazi's that must have been brought here, am I right?"- One couldn't say that his voice held a note of disdain, seeing as - to keep up the musical metaphor - there was an entire orchestra of disdain and disgust in his words.

The man on the other side of the door didn't care.

"Some may say so, yes. Oh, and…" The handle of a certain umbrella could be seen from the slit, before being replaced by the smirking face of the man.

"Thank you for your generous donation to our armory. I'll be sure to put this weapon to better use than you would have, rest assured. Don't try to escape, either. The cell is enchanted with magic to suppress you."

With a laugh, the man closed the eye slit and Alex could hear his feet thumping on the stone as he walked away.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I'll be perfectly honest, this chapter was supposed to be out on Sunday and I am really sorry about that. The Xbox Live Store on the 360 was closing on Monday and I had to move on that to make sure everything was updated the way I wanted and to capitalize on the sales. Bit of an end of era you know? The benefit, I think, with that decision was that it gave me extra time to clean up this chapter, and uh... wow there were some glaring issues from my side of the writing that needed to be addressed.

That being said, I do plan on completing the Hraesvelgr (I've been having a lot of issues posting the picture I want to use as a visual reference) and Allan entries in the next few days with the next chapter to be released on Saturday. I am also going to post the Shop entries for Alex and Sol very soon, as we have reached a bit of a turning point here regarding their physical states.

Till next time and I hope you all enjoy!

 

[Atma]

Sol immediately switched to Vendetta and brought the flat of the blade to protect himself. The strike from the club sent him skidding backward. Cassandra lunged again and while he was on the defensive, Sol began to realize something.

"She's slower… I could do this. I can survive this."

Upon the next strike, he forced her stone club away with greater force than he realized he could and went to swing at her exposed side. Instead of landing, she ducked under the swing and Sol felt a shot of pain in his side. Looking down, he saw her fist buried into his armor. Staggering, he swung Vendetta in a wide arc to create some distance.

"So you are stronger! I should have aimed lower!" Cassandra said with a demented laugh.

Breathing heavily Sol muttered "Bitch."

Her smile widened "That's the spirit, come on!"

This time Sol forced the offensive and let loose a Stinger. Cassandra just barely raised her club in defense and had to twist the club around to remove the blade from her weapon. Recovering, she swung wildly and Sol Time Stepped to the side. Getting into her blind spot, he struck her in her side.

Recoiling, the smile was whipped off her face. "You…!"

"Hurts, doesn't it!?" Sol shot back.

With a growl, Cassandra dropped all facets of joy and charged at Sol. After deflecting a series of wild strikes, she kicked out, landing a hit on Sol's leg. Hearing a creak in his leg, he reacted instantly and landed a left hook on her face…. with his new arm. The result, was an explosion of blood and viscera from her right eye. Barely missing the retaliatory strike, Sol backpedaled enough to get a good look at his opponent. Half her face was a mask of blood and the snarling look made her look far more like a demon than it had right to.

"Fucker!" She roared before charging again.

Sol met her strikes by trying his best to deflect them. Each time the stone club began to chip more and more until eventually…

*CRACK!*

The club shattered in half. At that moment, Sol steeled himself and was prepared to strike her down, to end this threat to himself and find Alex. However, in the moments between making the conscious decision to kill her and landing the hit, his hand painfully spasmed.

"Gah!" Sol gasped as a shock of pain and the jerking of muscles twisted his aim. The strike was not a kill strike… but it did take an arm.

"AHHHHHH!!!" Cassandra howled in agony, before leveling a kick at Sol's midsection. Knocked back, winded, and in pain, Sol could only watch as she tore the arm of the body of a previously slain demon that he neglected before. She forced the limb against the stump and growled in anger when nothing happened.

"How did you do it!? HOW!?" She roared in fury as she discarded the limb.

"More mysteries under heaven and earth than you know, you bitch!" Sol spat, finally standing up and clutching his waist.

**********************************************

Alex was busy. Since the nazi lieutenant had left, he had been busy inspecting the cell, as much as he could.

And he did find out something that lent credence to what he had said, that this cell was 'suppressing' him. The inside of the walls were painted with gray-black paint, barely visible in the low light and already gray-black stone inside. If it wasn't for his eyes, that had changed from being turned into a half-demon, he would never have managed to find them.

But, now that he had…

"It's not Enochian, but I can delete them." He traced the runes with his index while thinking. "I can… If I do this…" His habit of talking aloud was more for clearing his mind, nothing more. But if it worked, it worked.

"This will hurt like a bitch. But I did promise myself that I would embrace what I am, instead of limiting myself." With a shrug, he uncovered his left forearm and dragged his right hand on it, sharp nails slicing the flesh for a few moments, blood bubbling up.

It lasted barely enough for him to dip his fingers in it and start painting the wall, before the wound closed by itself, demonic regeneration not impeded by the runes on the wall. Any kind of internal effect wasn't impeded, as whoever had applied these runes was using a rather limited subset of knowledge.

"Purify here, on this wall. Break goes to the north. Dissolve above the door and I can put Cleanse on the west wall, to complete the square." Painting in blood was painful and not as easy as using paint, but he managed.

When he was putting the last symbol over the door, however, the eye slit in it slid open, with a different pair of eyes appearing.

"What are you doing, prisoner?" The harsh voice made Alex chuckle a little, much to the confusion of his jailer.

"Don't worry your pretty little head, nazi. I'm just bringing your entire operation down to the ground." The last stroke was done and he took a couple of steps back, returning to the center of the cell.

"Ha! As if! You are just a lowborn that lucked out with something we need to know. It's the only reason you are still alive!" His boasting lasted until Alex spoke a single word in a language that would have made a normal human's ears bleed.

"[ ]"

The blood runes that he had created shone a virulent red-purple-gray, before dying down. And the entire spell over the cell shattered, with the sound of a thousand glass panes breaking apart. THAT shut the jailer up.

"Coming through." Silver and purple light shone in Alex's hand before he shot a beam at the door.

The metal-reinforced wood lasted exactly three-fourths of a second before it caved outside. The whole thing flew away, taking the jailer with it, both the man and the door crashing against the wall and landing on the ground in pieces. Alex strode outside his cell with a Mona Lisa smile on his face.

"What's this… Chaos…" That voice came from the stairwell upwards, where the lieutenant that had taunted Alex when he was still trapped had just reached the hallway, only to see his prisoner free and the jailer dead.

"I think…" The hybrid demon said, almost as if he was lost in thought. "That you have something of mine." Then, his eyes sharpened.

"I'm going to take it back, now."

The lieutenant turned and ran away, the umbrella clutched in his hands.

Alex Blinked forward, already in pursuit.

*********************************************

Cassandra POV

Cassandra was furious and was seeing red in more ways than one. "Damn you! This isn't over!" She roared before throwing the remains of her club at Sol.

Sol barely managed to raise his blade in defense, but the force of the broken weapon launched him backward. She didn't bother to look back.

"I should have just killed him, killed him, killed him!!!" She thought, her mind racing as she leaped away from the site of their battle.

"This isn't over yet! I'll kill you! Kill you! KILL YOU!!!" She roared before leaving. She'd figure out his trick, she had to. It was the only way she could survive this place.

********************************************

Sol, struggling to get back on his feet, could only look on at the retreating figure. "Yeah, same here bitch. Gah!" He finished with a gasp as his side let him know the strength of that last kick.

"Yep! That's probably a broken rib or three. Okay… okay, let's take stock, you're missing your gun, but have the rest of your weapons and armor. Alex is somewhere and you don't know where he is…" He paused mid-thought as he fully stood up. "Knowing my luck, he's probably either in the building or in the complete opposite direction of where you're going to look… so might as well check the building first."

Sol entered back into the large building with a cautious gait to his step. He knew the nazis were involved in this fresh serving of bullshit and figured they'd be prowling about, but couldn't be sure where. However, knowing that space would be an issue, he swapped to Gevaudan and was prepared to go up the flight of stairs.

"Maybe they're on the roof?" He questioned aloud before an impact rocked the building. Losing his balance, Sol fell down the short distance of stairs and as he tried to stand, was forced to roll out of the way of falling debris from the ceilings and foundations.

"What the hell is going on here?"

Sol didn't manage to check it out, as a man dressed all in white, with blond hair and blue eyes ran past him, an umbrella clutched in his hands. His face, for the brief moment he managed to see it, was a mix of dark anger and desperation.

A moment later, Alex appeared from the hallway that the man had come from, a frown on his face and without his weapon.

"Sol!" He skidded to a halt, leaning down and grabbing him by the wrist, before lifting him like he weighed nothing. "You're okay!"

Sol looked at Alex, then at the floor, and then back at Alex. "Reasonably, that psycho Cassandra broke some of my ribs I think. You look… a helluva lot better than you did before. Though that could have been the blood loss talking." Sol said with some strain.

"I feel a lot better. Thanks to you! You saved my life again!" Alex smiled widely, before moving his arm and moving Sol into a princess carry position, so as not to aggravate his ribs. "Now, sorry for the speed, but that nazi has my weapon, so I need to go fast. Don't… try to not get scared, ok?" His expression turned sheepish for a moment, before pivoting on his feet and shooting down the hallway, following the path that the lieutenant had taken.

The one from where Sol had just come from, by chance.

"Not Cool, Not Cool, Not Cool!!!" Sol shouted as the two flew through the building.

The lieutenant didn't make it as far as he would have liked to before Alex and Sol zoomed into the room where he had fled to.

"I've already taken a few lives and an arm today, drop the umbrella and leave. I'm willing to be the better angel here. My friend here, not so much." Sol said as he offered Gevaudan to Alex.

Alex didn't say anything, he just put Sol gently on the ground and grabbed the weapon.

The Lieutenant turned towards them and unsheathed Calcabrina, clearly ready to fight for what was his, but a new arrival interrupted the stand-off.

"You're still alive?!" The shrill voice came from above, where a one-armed woman was standing on a balcony, with what looked like a piece of a column in her hands. "You lied to me!" She also looked even more crazed than the last time.

Alex looked at her without recognizing her for a moment, before he blinked and his eyes went a little wide. "Ah, the businesswoman from the start." Then he frowned, recalling what had happened between them.

"I didn't lie. I just didn't tell you that I had been cured. The Statue can do a lot of things, haven't you learned this by now?" His tone was chiding, like he was talking with little children.

Sol looked between Cassandra and nazi Lieutenant. "You two really are working together… Scratch that, mercy has been rescinded right now." Sol gestured at the lieutenant with Vendetta.

"You first, and then…" He pointed at Cassandra "We'll finish what we started."

"Fuck you!" The Cassandra hissed before leaping away.

"I guess it's 2 on 1 now you nazi prick," Sol said with a shaky shrug.

"I'll take care of him." Alex smiled darkly, taking a few steps forward, silver light shining from his eyes. The Lieutenant, to his credit, didn't take a single step back. Instead, he sneered back.

Then, a boulder the size of a car went sailing from above his head, Cassandra having tossed it towards Alex and Sol with a single arm.

Sol leaped backward, looked in the general direction of the car's path, and muttered. "You just had to get the last laugh didn't you?"

He made his way in between Alex and Cassandra and felt her fist strike against the flat of Vendetta.

"You!..." She hissed.

"Let's finish what we started." Sol interrupted her.

"Out of my way!" Cassandra didn't even care about Sol, she was so completely focused on Alex for a strange reason, who just cocked his head to the side, faintly puzzled, before smiling. "Yeah, sure. Sol, can you recover my weapon?" He cracked his head to the sides before he took a few steps forward and squared against the woman, energy seeping from him.

"Alright… She'll try to hit below the belt if you catch my drift." Sol said to Alex before turning the lieutenant.

"Now if you don't drop the blade, you'll be missing those arms before the battle is done." Sol continued.

"You think I'm afraid of you!?" The Lieutenant roared with bravado.

"I honestly don't know nor do I care," Sol stated simply.

The Lieutenant didn't say anything more, he just slashed the sword toward Sol, an arc of energy projecting from the blade and screaming forward.

In the meantime, Alex was jumping and skipping around Cassandra, always keeping slightly farther than what her hits could reach. Mostly was thanks to her lacking an arm and that fact screwing with her balance, but she still had that monstrous strength behind her attacks, so she was still a danger.

"Stand still and let me kill you!" Cassandra's roar was followed by a slam of a heavy club where Alex was a moment before. He didn't say anything, only smirking, before he blinked behind her and, with a roundhouse kick, sent her slamming against the wall.

Sol used the flat of Vendetta to deflect the blast before advancing forward. He knew he couldn't just go ham on this bastard. He needed to take back Calcabrina, not destroy it.

As Sol deflected another blast, he heard the Lieutenant bark out. "A half-breed like you can never defeat a perfect human!" Before the Lieutenant thrust forward with Calcabrina.

Sol, pushing the blade away, backhanded the man with his left arm before responding. "That's offensive on two fronts, but it won't matter in the long run!"

In the meantime, Alex was doing something that he had never done before fighting hand-to-hand with Cassandra, who was still wielding the piece of broken rock like a club.

"How could you be so strong!? I killed and killed and gained those Orbs! More than anyone else in my group!" She was clearly on the edge of being unhinged, but Alex wasn't really touched by it.

"Oh, I just had to almost die and lose a couple of organs to demons. Then replace those parts with demon parts." He shrugged while leaning back into a bridge to let the attack pass over him. Then, he transitioned into a handstand, kicking her on the chin and sending her stumbling back.

Meanwhile with Sol…

The Lieutenant staggered back, clutching at his jaw while pointing Calcabrina at Sol. Blood was dribbling between the man's lips and Sol could see something shifting between his cheeks.

"Busted some teeth there, didn't I!? Come on, I'll show you the power of this arm!" Sol taunted before charging the man. While he deflected several more strikes with the flat of Vendetta, Sol's real goal with it was something else entirely. While mid-deflection Sol spun, letting the momentum carry him and Vendetta forward. The Lieutenant tried to capitalize with a thrust but between the pain of missing teeth and his anger, he overshot… showing his back to Sol. The flat of Vendetta struck the lieutenant between the shoulder blades, throwing him off his feet and to the ground. Seeing where he fell, Sol began to approach, Vendetta raised on high.

"He's so much weaker and slower than she was… Guess in a twisted way Vergil had an okay idea there about power." Sol thought before bringing Vendetta down. The Lieutenant dodged the strike and lashed out with Calcabrina, cutting a line just across the upper part of Sol's left arm. Recoiling from the strike, Sol unintentionally allowed the Lieutenant to recover and stand up. As he did, he leveled quite the death glare in Sol's direction.

"Ah should have figured, my left side has always been weaker than my right, let's end this." Sol said as he readied Vendetta again.

The Lieutenant raised the blade once more and got back into his stance.

Alex, in the meantime, was harassing Cassandra, who was getting more and more frustrated with her inability to hit him. Finally, he moved forward, Blinking behind her, and tried to grab her by the neck, to snap it. That didn't happen though, as she threw herself into a roll forward, only a few strands of her hair getting caught in Alex's nails.

"You have played enough," Cassandra said darkly, once she was back on her feet, her voice was filled with fury. "BURN!!"

Flames jumped from the ground all around Alex, in an attempt to restrict his movements and hem him in. They also served to separate the two parties from each other.

Ignoring the flames, the other two fighters stared each other down for a moment before lunging. The Lieutenant thrust Calcabrina at Sol, who reflexively deflected the blade. However, the Lieutenant was counting on that, as his free hand went to grab Vendetta's handle. Sol grabbed at the offending hand by the wrist with his left hand, and the two spun, each trying to get a dominant hold of the battle while caught in a cross lock.

"Not content with Calcabrina!? Trying to steal something else!?" Sol roared, his grip tightening.

"Y..u don… de…vr it, ba…ta..d!" The lieutenant tried to shout through broken teeth.

"Well fuck you too then!" Sol shot back before twisting Vendetta slightly for some extra space and headbutting the Lieutenant. As he did so, however, Sol's hand spasmed once more, increasing the strength of its grip significantly. In most other circumstances, the Lieutenant's wrist would have been snapped by the sudden increase in strength. It did not, as something under his sleeve protected the bone and kept it stable. This something did not, however, survive the crushing effect and cut deeply into the Lieutenant's wrist.

With a sharp cry, the Lieutenant released his grips and reeled away before reflexively grabbing at his now bleeding wrist, dropping Calcalbrina in the process. Sol, acting quickly, snatched the blade up, and began to advance on the Lieutenant.

"It's over!" Sol shouted before attempting to swing Vendetta down. In response, the Lieutenant raised his bleeding arm forward and something happened… There was a wave of demonic energy that pushed Sol back. He was about to question what that just was until he heard the screaming.

"GAHAHHHAHHAHHHHHH!!!!!" The Lieutenant howled as his voice became distorted and the energy wave warped the air around him, making it hard to see what exactly was happening. The metal piece that Sol had unknowingly destroyed was the control piece for the Pseudo Angelo armor. In a broken state, it would have been already dangerous, but when activated and embedded into one's flesh, the demonic energy had no place to safely go and so it went to the only viable vessel it could: the wearer's body.

As the Lieutenant screamed, the armor that comprised the Pseudo Angelo began to form and fuse into his very flesh. He writhed in agony, his features beginning to warp as more demonic armor grew from his body. The end result, still screaming, stood taller than the Pseudo Angelos from before, looked more organic, and bore only a small shred of the human face just visible underneath the visor but locked in a frightful visage.

"...You… You're like Nelo Angelo. No, that's not right, is it? What the hell did you do to yourself? What the hell did I just do?" Sol asked in horror.

The warped Lieutenant howled, before charging at Sol, missing completely, and impacting into a wall behind him. Sol could only watch in horror as this parody of man and demon tried to free itself.

In the meantime, Alex was still between the flames and his enemy, unaware of what was happening with Sol and the Lieutenant. But the screams were very clear to hear.

"Hear that? It's the herald of your defeat." Alex cocked his head to the side, a Mona Lisa smile on his face. "And I tire of playing with you, to be honest. I find you pretty…" He chuckled. "Eh… H-armless."

Cassandra roared in rage, as Alex's reminder of her missing arm sent her charging furiously toward him, her existing arm covered in fire and a new one formed by the very flames she was wielding. Alex didn't move. He just raised a hand and she slammed against a bubble made of stopped time, instantly freezing, even the flames moving in slow motion. Then, Alex's second weapon appeared in his hands, the metal staff gleaming under the flickering light of the fire.

"Seraphim." The feathered fan atop the staff opened slightly, the feathers vibrating imperceptibly. "Sing!"

A wave of sound sent Cassandra flying back, beyond the opened arch, and onto the other side of the garden, quickly extinguishing the flames that she had haphazardly produced.

Meanwhile, the Lieutenant writhed within the broken wall before twisting out and throwing a large piece of rubble at Sol. Still processing the horror before him, Sol was barely able to raise Vendetta in time to block the attack before being thrown back by its force. Quickly righting himself, Sol was forced to dodge as the warped Lieutenant charged again, this time turning on its heels to avoid trapping itself again. It stood there for a moment, watching Sol with an animalistic fury, and Sol could see the sheath of Calcabrina hanging from its hip. He tried to quickly slot Calcabrina into his inventory before hastily diving to his side and slicing the warped lieutenant in a blind strike. The creature made its pain known and Sol could see that there was a deep cut in its side.

"Before that would have probably bisected him… Alex! Finish her now! We have bigger problems to worry about!" Sol shouted over the battle.

"I think she's still… alive… what the fuck did happen while I was behind the curtain of fire?" His voice wasn't shouting, but it was definitely pretty high in pitch. The Lieutenant growled.

"Oh, forget it!" He Blinked forward and the lieutenant was enveloped in a bubble of stopped time.

It worked, momentarily, as demonic energy roiled from the Lieutenant, quickly destabilizing and destroying the bubble.

Then, Alex turned towards Sol. "Did you manage to recover Calcabrina? I'm kinda attached to it." His voice wasn't snarky, but it wasn't completely normal, either.

Sol quickly withdrew Brina and tossed it to Alex.

"He still has the sheath… did he hybridize himself without anyone knowing? No… no there was something, I'm sure I felt something break when we grappled. Was that it?" Sol asked more to himself than anyone else.

The warped Lieutenant began to stalk forward, growling like a rabid beast. The umbrella part of Calcabrina still hung from his waist, but the belt that kept it there was damaged, both from the imperfect transformation and the slash that Sol had tried to use to kill him before.

Alex turned towards him and held the blade in his hand, in a loose hold. "Go deal with the woman. I may have accidentally told her that you can fuse with demon parts at the statue. I'll take care of the angel reject here." His voice was frigid.

"Alright, he's fast so watch out for that. Remember, you've still got Gevaudan." Sol cautioned before looking in the direction that Cassandra had been sent and running after the presumed dead woman. Running over the scorched stone and glass, Sol found himself in an open-air garden.

"Must be a lunch spot for workers or families…" Sol questioned aloud before catching the sight of something. A small trail of blood stemming from a broken window and a vague human-sized dent on the other side. Stepping into the opposing hallway quietly, Sol noticed a further trail of small blood stains leading from the area and deeper into the building.

"Okay… where are you now? Where would I go if I got a vague idea of how and where to boost myself and I was hurt, pissed, and insane." Sol was quiet for a second before a dawning sense of horror began to manifest. He looked up before muttering, "The elevator."

While Sol was pursuing the woman, Alex was dealing with the nazi turned angel/demon/thing.

"You will pay for this!" The Lieutenant hissed, speaking for the first time, his voice distorted and garbled. While he was starting to regenerate some of his teeth, he wasn't anywhere near top condition, while Alex, on the other hand, was in significantly better condition.

"Sure. Send the bill to 'Who Cares', at 'Nowheresville'. I'll receive it on February the 30th." The snark of Alex was the drop that made the dam break. So, the Lieutenant shot forward, a blade manifesting in his hand, made of brilliant white energy.

They clashed, blade against energy, several times, the air being torn apart by the speed and the strength both of them were displaying. Alex tried to spear his head, only for the lieutenant to jerk it to the side and retaliate with a horizontal slash that would have removed Alex's legs at the knees. So, Alex jumped and then Blinked forward before slamming against the Lieutenant's back with a tackle, his hand going to the umbrella. When the lieutenant managed to buck Alex away from him, he let himself be thrown away, only to flip in midair and land a few meters away, the sheath back in his possession.

"Ah, owner and weapon back together, as it should be. Now, do you want to get killed quietly or do you prefer the hard way?" Alex's grin was downright evil and the nazi stopped for a moment, apparently trying to reassess the situation. Then, the Lieutenant lowered his head and a new blade appeared in his off hand.

"Hard way it is." Alex smirked, only to have to roll to the side, as the Lieutenant shot forward in a charge, aiming at Alex's midsection. Before Alex could do anything, the Lieutenant continued moving, straight toward the entrance of the tower.

"You fucking coward! Don't think you're going to escape!" Alex threw himself in pursuit, teeth bared and magic sparking around him.

******************************************************

Sol quickly followed the trail to the main hall of the tower, noting that it stopped in front of the elevator he and Alex had accessed earlier. He began to press the call button frantically in an attempt to bring it down.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

A few minutes earlier…

Cassandra's fist smashed into the elevator panel... She was in such a rage that she was uncaring of the damage she caused, more concerned over the shards of glass and steel that peppered her body. Using her remaining hand to pull the pieces from the spots she could reach, she felt the elevator rise.

"The Statue is on the roof, I need a demon and…" Her musings were interrupted by the elevator coming to a rest. She looked at the floor light.

"28? But, dammit!" She hissed as the door opened. Walking onto the 28th floor, she overlooked the tightly packed cubicles with no small degree of disdain until a blur of motion flashed across her vision. At first, she assumed it was just eyes or in this case, eye. She was having difficulty seeing out her right side no thanks to that bastard with the arm, but the blur happened again on her left and it dawned on her.

She squared her shoulders and balled her left fist. The third time the blur came, it was coming towards her, and she struck upwards. Her fist connected with something hard and scaly. The blur solidified into a large, reddish demon that recoiled from the blow. Landing on its feet, the demon shook itself, slightly disoriented.

A twisted grin manifested on her face. She had found her demon alright. It charged her once again and she backhanded it. The strike sent the Fury into the cubicles and she watched it quickly get up and come at her again. She struck it back down, but this time she began to kick the demon before doing it again, and again until her foot went through its chest. She ignored the cuts and wounds she received from its thrashings and brought her heel down on the right arm before removing one of its eyes and ripping out the arm that she was currently lacking.

She smirked as she looked upon her bloody rewards before she heard the noise of the elevator pinging.

"Dammit, not now!" She snarled before throwing the remains of the demon at the Elevator. The body sailed through the doors and slammed into the back wall of the elevator. The force of the impact, combined with the downward motion, caused a chain reaction that sent the elevator crashing down to the ground floor.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

There was a moment where Sol considered just running up the stairs before he heard a shrieking noise of metal on metal and very quickly moved away from the elevator. With a loud crash, the ground shook, sending Sol falling onto the floor. Quickly getting back up, he spied the remains of the elevator and noticed the dissolving body of a demon he knew to be a fury resting inside.

Looking around, his eyes spied the stairwell entrance and he muttered, "Dammit all… stairs it is."

It took Sol a few minutes of traversing the stairwell to realize something. "I should be using Time Step shouldn't I?" It wasn't perfect, but each step managed to speed up his ascent by a decent degree.

As he reached the impromptu roof access door, Sol heard the sound of a female voice shrieking from somewhere above him. As he opened the door, he could see a red light coming from the area where the Statue was located. Whatever was happening wasn't good. As he navigated the broken stone, steel, and glass, Sol drew Vendetta, and quietly surveyed the area.

The wind seemed to howl more intensely than he remembered. Sol looked up towards the Statue and saw Cassandra getting up, putting weight on… both arms as where the right arm should have ended, a red scaly arm began. Cassandra stood at her full height and flexed her arm before hefting a new weapon. Looking more like a hunk of roughly formed iron, it was a large spiked iron club that seemed weightless in her hands. Her head leaned forward and turning, Sol saw that even from that distance her eye was different.

She looked at Sol and a cruel smirk blossomed on her face. "I understand now, understand how the hell a weakling like you survived this long. Ethics? Laws!? I was already sick of all that bullshit! I'll kill you, that other one, and anyone else who stands in my way, even Goode!"

"Goode?" Sol began to question before Cassandra threw herself at him, club raised high.

CASSANDRA: FURIOUSLY IMPERFECT HYBRID

******************************Sol POV***************************​

I quickly rose Vendetta to block the oncoming strike and felt my entire weight shift back from the blow. Before I could do anything else, I felt her foot smash into my right shoulder and watched the world spiral as the impact sent me sailing through the air. The moment I hit the ground, I half stood and swung Vendetta around, I felt the blade strike something and heard the hiss of pain. Cassandra recoiled, and I saw another thin line of blood slowly ebbing from her new arm. She glared at me and I was genuinely unsettled by the new eye that was looking my way.

No words were exchanged between us as we attacked each other, but I began to realize something very quickly, I was going to lose. Each time she swung, it was all I could do to bring my weapon to bear for defense. Each time I attacked, she would move with such speed that I just missed, that eye of hers flashing as she did.

"Hold on, could that be it? Could it be that simple?" I thought as I parried another one of her blows. "When Alex first started using real demonic power, it was all internalized, it was literally in his bones, but with her, it could be her eyesight… And at the speed she's going, she may be causing more damage to herself than she realizes. But I can't last that long for a kidney or two, or her eye to fail. I hope this works."

I managed to kick away from her and for a moment saw that wicked smile on her face. She took a breath and surged forward, and I swung… down, across, and upward. Vendetta kicked up a massive amount of dust and debris and I saw her blurring form solidify into her full body. She was trying to get the crap I just sent her way out of her eyes. I made to swing and had to watch my distance as her demonic arm lashed out, claws just barely missing my throat. As I recoiled, I spun and swung, letting the momentum carry me and add extra force to the strike.

Cassandra had just managed to clear her vision briefly before she saw the blade coming her way, and tried to bring her club around. The weapon just barely made it, but the force of the impact still sent her screaming into a part of the collapsed roof. I was pissed at her luck with blocking that strike, but then I heard her scream. When the dust around her had settled, I could see that Cassandra had landed between a section of collapsed wall and support beams, smack dab into a mass of exposed rebar. The rods had pierced her in the back and I could even see some of them protruding out the front of her ruined clothes. She stopped screaming, gasped, and pushed herself forward. I'd be lying if I didn't feel sick looking at this.

She fell forward, head bowed low as her demonic arm snatched up the club, and then began to violently shake and spasm.

"After all I've done, everyone I've killed, I can't let this end here. I WON'T ALLOW IT!" She roared.

I couldn't speak, didn't even want to. I had no idea who she was before all this and would be the last person to make an informed statement of her character. Yet I knew right then and there, that she was too far gone to stop once we left this hell. I had to stop her, here and now. A stupid, wild idea came to me then and I took off my helmet. Feeling the dust-filled air across my face, I hoped beyond hope that this stupid idea worked. It might have been my only shot at ending this now.

"GRAHHHH!!!!" She roared once more and I could practically feel power flooding off her. As she squared herself, I could see black wisps dancing off of her body and I readied myself. She charged with the club raised high, and I threw the helmet as hard as I could toward her, hoping that it would fly straight. Without waiting to see if it did, I met her charge. She smashed the helmet to the side and in that moment, her entire midsection was wide open and I was already in mid-swing. She tried to bring her club to bear but was already so committed to the previous motion that she couldn't do it in time. I felt Vendetta bite and then felt the parting of flesh and bone. The death scream that came next would haunt me for the rest of my days.

I took a breath, held it, and released it to steady myself. I turned to look at Cassandra. Vendetta's cut had bisected her at an angle and I could feel the bile rising in the back of my throat as I took it in. I approached her body cautiously and realized that the only sign of life left was her glassy eyes staring up at me hatefully. I noticed something else then, a small thing. It was a business card, partially soaked in the growing pool of blood. Reaching for it, my hands brushed against her side and she broke apart into a large mass of Red Orbs. Trying not to notice the absurd amount of orbs, and looking at the card instead, I read it aloud.

"Cassandra Stevens, Business Consultant…. Ryder Industries." I closed my eyes briefly, flicked the card away, and then looked at where she once was.

"So… who the hell is Goode?" I asked aloud before the sounds of battle drew my attention to the other building. Grabbing the club and my helmet, I could only think that it must have been Alex and Lieutenant finishing what they started.

*************************Alex PoV****************************​

I was running up the stairs with an ease of movement that was still incredible to me. I was fat before, and rather mild, as a person. Since I had come here… My eyes sharpened, just barely taking in that I was passing through level 33 of the Tower and had literally no problem in keeping up what was basically an all-out sprint.

Sadly, the nazi/error of nature that was in front of me didn't have a problem, either. While he didn't have wings, he could manage some sort of strange, power-assisted jumps that allowed him to skip entire sections of the stairs. Not fast enough for me to not simply Blink forward and catch up to him, but never reach him. Damn.

"Stop hunting me!" His voice shouted from the top of the stairs, at level 35, a place where we had to pass through a room to go forward. It was the third room placed like that, and while he didn't try anything in the first one on floor 25, he tried to cave the floor behind him and made me fall on the second one, on floor 30. Sadly for him, I managed to Blink forward before he could do it.

Thus, my caution in approaching him right now. Still, he looked as cautious as I was. I soon discovered why.

Inside the room, chained to all heavens on the floor, walls, and ceiling, was an Alto Angelo, still alive, with parts of his body missing: the wings had been reduced to spurs coming from the back, the left leg from the knee down was only bone and the right arm was just a stump at the shoulder. On the torso, part of the armor and skin underneath had been removed, exposing the muscles to the air, while his eyes had been removed rather cleanly. At least, they were bobbing in a jar on a nearby shelf, practically untouched.

Cold blood ran through my body, while a wave of pure disgust and nausea crawled up my throat like a swarm of bugs. The sound of a door closing and steps running away made my blood boil in fury, the previous coldness replaced with something I hadn't EVER felt in my entire life, be it before or after my summoning. Rage. Pure, undiluted rage.

Pivoting on my foot, the closed and locked door didn't oppose me in the slightest, a kick making the whole thing explode in shards of crudely reinforced wood. The sight of the lieutenant turning the corner on another flight of stairs made me sneer.

I Blinked forward, turned my head, and Blinked again, this time reappearing in mid-air, my foot impacting the head back of the Lieutenant and sending him crashing through another door. The last floor of the tower.

Where there should have been hallways, rooms, and another set of stairs to the roof, there weren't. There was, instead, a big, circular room, made of stone that was completely different from the rest of the room, with a 'throne' at the opposite end of the room from the door, with a Divinity Statue on the side, near a hole in the wall - the one me and Sol saw from the top of the mall - covered with a tarp.

On the throne, a man dressed in what looked like a cobbled-together military uniform with a swastika on a band on his left arm and two other men, both at attention.

They turned towards me, a shocked look on their faces, before the lieutenants that I was currently trampling - my kick had sent him on the ground and I was standing on his back - groaned in pain, his altered form's voice sounded even more cracked.

"The intruders… I tried stopping them… My armor's malfunctioning... I'm sorry Leader…"

And then he stopped talking. Mostly because I had driven Calcabrina in his skull, splattering his brain matter on the floor.

"Allow me to introduce myself: I'm a man of wealth and taste…" My voice was humming a little and I physically couldn't resist making that pun.

The Leader, a blond man, with black eyes, pale skin and a strange aura that demanded attention despite his average looks, only rose, masking any form of surprise he had. His helpers though, couldn't really cover their shock at me having killed one of their lieutenants with what looked like no problem at all.

"But don't let me stop you. What were you talking about?" My smile was devilish, and I knew that, while my twist of the blade was enough to swing away the blood and re-sheath it in a single move. I was extra like that. The Red Orbs were a nice touch, tough

"I don't know who you think you are-!" The lieutenant on the left - from now called 'Lefty' - took a step forward, white armor crawling up his arms, but I didn't care. The Leader, however, cared. I think. Well, either he cared or wanted to insult me.

"I can see that you are a strong man. A man with conviction. The way you handled one of my men was… impressive." His voice was oily. I've met a couple of convincing men in my life, but this guy oozed oil like an industrial tanker. It was disgusting.

"You could become great in my operation. After we have conquered this city and grabbed the means of controlling the demons, nothing is stopping us from returning to the real world and conquering the city. We could secure a prosperous future for our child-"

I had to interrupt him. "Blah blah blah! I don't care!" My shout seemed to surprise him more than my killing did. "Look, tinpot tyrant, let me explain things to you: you are a Nazi. That means that you choose, deliberately, to be cruel, uncaring, and racist towards anyone and anything that is not a narrow subset of humanity. Which means that you are worse than a demon. Wanna know why?"

I didn't even let him answer, the question was more of a hook for me to continue. "Because demons are born cruel and uncaring of human lives. They don't hate them, they prey on them like a cat preys on rats. It's natural for them. You, on the other hand, are an allegedly human being who is actively choosing to hate and attack other humans." They weren't stunned by my speech, per se, but they were clearly taken a little aback.

The leader, then, slowly sat again. "I see. You are one of those who choose to betray their race. Like that rabble that came here with us." He sighed and made a show of shaking his head. "So be it. Kill him."

His two lieutenants shot forward, one with a heavy hammer and even heavier armor and the other with a rapier and a gun at his waist, wearing lighter armor. And yet… They were so slow. I Blinked forward, Calcabrina already slashing at Righty's, knee, severing the tendons and cracking the bone, before turning and aiming the tip of the sheath towards Runner, shooting three bullets in a moment. The two lieutenants crashed on the ground, their shouts of pain signaling that I had hit deep enough to hurt them.

NOW the Leader was starting to get worried and my smile was all teeth.

********************************************

The fight with the Helpers was a bit… underwhelming, to be honest. They were good and strong, but they were humans, even with their armors.

Righty was a tank through and through, his armor stopping even the strongest bullets that Runner shot with his demonically enhanced gun. The maul he wielded sent cracks spider webbing on the ground at every hit. Runner, on the other hand, was fast as the wind, darting to and fro the room, the rapier slashing and swinging around surrounded by cutting winds. Runner's gun shot bolts of lightning that electrocuted anything that it hit unless it was protected by a thick layer of armor.

Sadly for them, the left knee of Righty was cut, and the armor around Runner had several scorch marks from my bullets. So, they started with a handicap. And I was… Well, let's just say that I was singing a song that I had heard while trawling the internet while fighting. And I was still kicking their asses like there was no tomorrow.

"Locked in a cage with all the rats, I've slipped through the cracks…" I had to twist my body to the side to avoid three shots, before retaliating with a charged one. Then, double jumped over Righty and kicked him to the ground - that damage to the knee was really a BIG handicap - and slashed at Runner, the line of energy following my swing and carving a part of the wall.

"And now I'm stuck with the scraps and I can't seem to find my way ba-ack…"

I found killing humans horrible, I mean I really, really hated it.

"Oh, get me out, get me out of here…"

Lucky me, Nazis weren't humans, so I had no moral quandary to trap in a Time Bubble Runner, before Blinking to the side and letting Righty smash him with his maul. The result wasn't pretty and the corpse of the nazi fell to the ground, while I could somewhat read the horrified stance of the armored helper.

It didn't last, as I Blinked behind him and thrust Calcabrina right in his neck. The armor managed to resist for a moment before my magic blew a hole in it, wide enough for my blade to take the neck on the next swing.

***********************Third Person PoV**********************​

It took less time than Sol realized to make it up the adjacent tower. The only thing that really did slow him down was the, well what he was mentally referring to as 'that fucked up autopsy room'. Still, the sounds of battle were close and he did steal the eyeballs that were carefully set aside. Better in his hands than the nazis any day of the week. As he got to the door where the sounds were coming from, he quickly kicked it down, shouting as he did so, or he would have…

"Alex! I come to provide hel… Oh! Oh… what the fuck happened here? How did his body fall that way?" Sol asked, gesturing at the Runner.

"Got trapped in a time bubble and his ally smashed his head to a pulp." Alex's unflappable answer was somewhat at odds with the atmosphere of the room, with it having three fresh corpses in it. "And now, there's only the leader."

"Congratulations." His voice, however, was incredibly cold. He seemed surprised by the death of his helpers, but his recovery was swift. "You are indeed a threat worthy of me."

Sol paused to look at the leader before saying, "The Lion, The Witch, and the Audacity of this Fuck. Look, I just bisected a woman who could move at damn near super speed after running up 20+ flights of stairs, and Alex here just fucked your guys up in record time. You're an upjumped nazi with delusions of grandeur and the only one that was an actual threat was the… uh… what should we call him, Deformato Angelo?" Sol asked Alex.

"Eh, sure. I mean, I've been calling him a Cooling Corpse, but that works." The hybrid answered, not removing his eyes from the Leader, who merely chuckled. That sent the two of them on high alert.

"True. As much as I loathe to admit that, I let myself be assured that my only enemies were this abomination called demons and those heathen Punks down in the gutter. I can now see that there are stronger enemies around. Still, I wonder…" He started glowing a pale gold, the air around him lighting up. "How are you going to deal with my entire army? You are strong, sure, but can you deal with more than forty enemies? Without dying?"

The sound of feet running up could be heard from the stairs behind them. A lot of feet.

"I really shouldn't have kicked down the door." Sol grumbled before turning on his heel. "Alex, leave them to me, if there are any left after you've dealt with this cowardly ass, they're all yours." Sol finished before hefting a large club that he most definitely did not have before, and chucking it down the hallway he came from.

Walking out into the hall, Sol took up Vendetta once more and swung around the people gathering, some clearly wounded by the thrown club. "Listen up you screw heads, unlike you all I still keep in touch with my humanity. So in respect to that humanity, this is my only offer of mercy. Drop your flags, leave now, and you live. Don't, and you die. What's it gonna be?"

The sound of weapons being drawn and armors donned greeted him.

"Can't say I didn't offer you all a way out." Sol muttered before charging into the horde.

In the meantime, Alex was facing the Leader with his weapon drawn and his face set into a scowl.

"Frustrating, isn't it?" The Leader chuckled, as his form grew both in mass and stature. "There was a time when I thought that personal power was all that mattered. However, having underlings and helpers is a big power in itself." The armor covered him, gleaming white and with something that the others didn't have: wings. "Especially when you gain powers from them and them from me." His voice was now thunderous, while a giant broadsword made of light appeared in his hands.

Then, he was in front of Alex, swinging down. Only the appearance of his Barrier Spell saved the hybrid from being hit rather severely.

"You won't last against me." The Leader's voice was downright demonic. "I have the strength of my army behind me. And the more they believe in me, the more they grow stronger, too."

Speaking of his army… Sol batted a few of the nazi flunkies away, with Vendetta taking at least one head on a back-swing, before intercepting a Pseudo Angelo and grabbing the unlucky bastard. Using them as a shield, Sol began to make some distance between himself and the group as a whole. He didn't have as much space as he'd have liked. And then like before, he had a stupid thought. A really stupid one that could have made some breathing room.

"The Lieutenant's control module was like a watch, right? So, left wrist? Oh fuck me this is gonna get bad." Sol thought before using his demon arm to grab the left wrist of the Pseudo Angelo and apply as much pressure as he possibly could. The Pseudo Angelo tried to escape his grapple before a horrendous cracking noise filled the air and the outpouring of demonic energy soon followed. Kicking the bastard into the crowd, Sol watched with barely-held horror as the Pseudo Angelo warped into a Deformato and thrashed among the crowd, sending them flying. Some fell among and against the various walls and tables, and others… well it was going to be a long fall and a short stop.

Meanwhile, Alex and the Leader kept up their duel, both physically and verbally.

"So, what happens to your army if I kill you?" Alex asked, silver light surrounding him. The Leader laughed, before vanishing into a burst of speed, slamming the flat side of the broadsword against the back of Alex, sending him flying to the other side of the room.

"It's not going to happen. But it's simple: the backlash would kill them all." He could feel the smile in the Leader's voice while he said that. Alex frowned.

"No skin off my nose, then." And he shot forward, Blinking around to try and confuse the Leader, who answered with broad swipes of his weapon and a series of short dashes.

Sol watched the Deformato Angelo swing wildly around before it turned and stared at him. There was stillness from the crowd before the twisted human howled, "What did you do to me!?"

Sol gave the Deformato a sharp glare before responding with a hiss. "Down, down to hell, and say that I sent you there!"

The Deformato lunged at him and Sol, already somewhat acquainted with its speed, twisted and let it move across the flat of Vendetta, sending it into a wall. The wall naturally collapsed, but the Deformato managed to cling to what little outcropping it could.

Sol could feel his arm beginning to spasm again, a deep tissue sensation that made his grip on Vendetta tenuous. "Come on Alex, finish the bastard will you? I'd rather not be the scorpion to their ants."

Alex was attempting to do exactly that. With, sadly for him, poor results.

Oh, the Leader of the nazis was not strong enough to suppress Alex, not a bit. But still, he was sturdy enough and fast enough that the blows that Alex had managed to score on him were nothing more than glancing, not deep enough to do anything. It didn't help that the Leader's taunts were starting to grate on him.

Oh, Alex knew that this was a tactic to make him lose control, but that didn't mean that it wasn't working. That was quickly becoming a serious problem. In the end, Alex had no other choice.

"SOL!" His bellow was loud enough to actually confuse the Leader for a moment, before he moved, avoiding several bullets aimed at him. "I HAVE A PLAN!"

"This should be good!" Sol hissed as batted away another nazi with his sword. "WHAT IS IT!?"

"COME HERE!" Alex smirked at the suddenly worried face of the Leader, before Blinking towards the door, ready to block the entrance to the room once his companion had entered.

Sol, without directly responding to Alex, looked at the crowd. "Enjoy your new friend assholes!"

"DAMN YOU!" The Deformato howled as it managed to clamber over the rubble.

"Alex, make it fast because I just made another Deformato and I know that was a bad idea!" Sol said as he made it through the door.

Alex smirked, only to create the largest bubble of stopped time that he had ever created until now, completely blocking the door and the walls into a locked, gray area.

The Leader quickly flashed backward, taking as much space as possible from Alex and Sol, eyeing them warily.

"So, I'm guessing you want to know what we are going to do, right?" Alex muttered, keeping his glare on the Leader, blade unsheathed and ready to bite.

"Does it follow along the lines of fucking him up?" Sol asked, worry tinting his voice.

Alex smiled, showing all of his teeth. "No."

"We jump."

"WHAT!?" Sol asked in horror.

"We JUMP!" Alex didn't wait for him to move. He just grabbed Sol from the back of his shirt and started running towards the tarp and the statue.

He had another plan, beyond jumping, of course, but he'll have to see if it was doable. Using his speed, he reached the other side of the room before the Leader had managed to take even a step, wind whipping his hair into a frenzy, before he extended his hand and his fingers brushed the statue for a moment.

But, in the timeless space of the statue, a moment was all that he needed.

"What… we're in the void? Why?" Sol asked when looking around the void.

"Because the nazi have moved the statue near the bird's nest. We need to gather all the strength we can use." Alex said. "Also, no one else can hear us here. So, there's that, too."

Then he turned fully towards Sol. "And while I need to be somewhat careful with the amount I use, you have no excuses. Buy something good." He wasn't asking. "Go first. I need a moment to think about what to choose."

"Alright," Sol said before the menu popped open. He looked at his red orb count, 167,850.

"That's a lot…okay what do we have to work with." The menus scrolled through and he made an effort to avoid anything marked with an L, he already had demonic blood flowing in his veins now, he had no idea nor desire to see what that tainted power would do to him. But, he did notice something new in his abilities.

"Demonic Arm? Oh… that would make sense."

There was only one option available, 'Abyssal Punch'. Upon reading the description, Sol couldn't help but laugh and make the purchase. 20,000 Red Orbs were taken and he felt power flood his arm.

"Of course something like that would be here." Sol said with no small degree of smugness.

Looking into abilities though, Sol realized that he couldn't just rely on Vendetta's weight and size, he needed Gevaudan again and purchased two more abilities. He watched his count drop another 50,000 and saw two more skills be added, Thriller and Breakaton.

Finally, he made one more purchase, something to have on hand so that maybe Rodin could work with later. An enchanted shotgun, something with a little bang for the buck.

"That's… 72,000 gone. Hope it all works." Sol said to himself before closing the menu. Turning to Alex, he simply said. "Can I have Gevaudan back? I want to try some new things."

"There you go." Alex quickly returned Sol's weapon to him, before starting to check his own options.

"So, I have… 146.800 Red Orbs. Quite a bit. Lucky me, I know where I want to put these."

Rapidly scrolling through his options, he stopped in the knowledge section to buy the missing Magic options that he had seen before.

Spells:
Enochian Magic Level 3 – Advanced: 5,000 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 4 – Master: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 3 – Advanced: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 4 – Master: 20,000 Red Orbs

"And that's 45k gone. I want to keep at least 50k, so…" Instead of going for the techniques or something like that, he chose to empower himself a bit more. As he had seen, while his turning into a hybrid had done wonders, he could always get better.

So, he turned towards the Orb page. He had bought a single Blue Orb, the one that healed his own problems. Two Purple Orbs, he had found, which meant that the first one he could buy was still discounted.

"I always had money burning a hole in my pocket." A wry smile graced his lips before he started mashing the button to buy those orbs.

He quickly bought the Blue Orb. That brought the price up to 3.500 Red Orbs. He bought that one, too. 6.000 Red Orbs. Then 9.000 Red Orbs. After that, it was 18.000 Red Orbs, so Alex stopped and moved on to the Purple Orbs.

Those, he had to focus and calculate them a bit better. 1.750 for the first one, the discounted one that he had never bought. Then it was 3.500. 6.000. And 9.000, stopping him when the next one would have cost him 18.000 Red Orbs.

With his wallet substantially lighter, he lazily looked down at possible options for his new weapon, but beyond deciding to upgrade his basic attack to the next level with 7.500 Red Orbs and buying the single target - more or less: it was more like a cone of attack instead of a full circle like the one he had now - attack for it for another 10.000 Red Orbs, he decided to stop there. He would need the Orbs for when he had the parts needed to heal himself and remove his affliction. Already, he was down to 50.950 Red Orbs.

"I'm ready. Do you have to do anything else?" He turned towards Sol, the various Blue and Purple Orbs melding with him, giving a rather strange, cold glow.

Sol had been practicing with Gevaudan and the Abyssal Punch. It felt good, real good, and when he heard Alex's question he responded with, "No, I'm going to save my Red Orbs for now… rather keep them for a worst-case scenario. Still, I don't think they'd expect us to come out swinging like this."

"Yes, 'swinging'." Alex's smile was strangely empty before he blinked. "We're almost done with the time we had here." He looked out, towards the direction where his body was. The space within the Watcher of Time's domain was more mental than physical, after all. "The momentum of my run will push us out of this space in moments. So, you have to get ready."

There was a visible amount of demonic energy gathering in Sol's arm, "Absolutely."

"Good. Get ready. Three, two, one…" The gold-white light vanishes and the duo return to their previous position in the room, with the Leader looking at them with wild eyes, the shrunken bubble around the door still shrinking and Alex… still running towards the tarp?

"So, now we… JUMP!!" And, without stopping, he shot forward, hitting the tarp fully and going through it like it wasn't even there.

They started falling from the thirty-eighth floor. Sol was still held in Alex's grip.

"What THE SHIT!!!???" Sol screamed as he felt the ground fall out from beneath him.

Alex, instead, was laughing loudly, his voice being ripped away by the furious wind of their fall "TRUST ME!!".

From above them, the Leader and the rest of the nazi looked down by the hole, curious about what the duo had done.

A cloud moved and a ray of light made them blink. When their eyes opened, the falling duo had disappeared.

"Where… Did they go?" The Deformato Angelo asked, his voice clearly hesitant, even through the strange alteration to his voice. Everyone around him, even the Leader, answered with a questioning silence and more than a glance of unease.

Then, they started hearing something. Something that sounded a lot like… singing?

"So if you care to find me, look to the western sky!" It came from the opposite direction of the eternally fixed sun. And it was coming closer and closer.

"As someone told me lately, everyone deserves the chance to fly! And if I'm flying solo…" Not strictly true, but Alex - because it was him that was singing, that was no mistake - was nothing if not faithful to the original material. "At least I'm flying free!"

Moments later, something came spiraling up from the direction of the ground, twisting around the tower. "To those who would ground me, take a message back from me!"

Finally, he reached the height of the hole, where the whole group of nazi was watching him. Alex was standing on his umbrella, riding it like a surfboard, while Sol was hanging onto the bottom.

"Tell them how… I am defying gravity! I'm flying high, defying gravity!" He belted the song, with a wide smile on his face, literally emanating happiness. Almost like he was daring the nazi to do something to stop him from being happy and joyful about being alive, of being himself, no matter what.

"And soon, I'll match them in renown!" With his eyes closed, he raised both of his hands and gave the nazi group two middle fingers.

"What are you waiting for?! STOP HIM!" The Leader yelled, almost hysterical, to the rest of the group, who looked at him without comprehension for a moment.

"And nobody, in all of Oz, no Wizard that there is or was." At this, he pointed at the Leader, his meaning fully clear: a challenge. "Is ever gonna bring.. me… DOWN!"

Almost as if in defiance of his words, Alex started falling - along with Sol and his weapon - downwards, starting with an almost timeless moment, hovering where he had first stopped, before slowly going down, Alex with his arms spread, Calcabrina in one and the other skimming the winds that were whipping his hair behind him. And he was still singing, while Sol was clearly not having a good time.

"Bring me dowwwn!! Ooohhhh!!" And, with the last line, he re-cast the flight spell on Calcabrina and vanished, in a burst of speed, away from the tower and the nazi territory.

Sol had stopped screaming, being somewhat used to Alex's high-flying plans. It didn't stop from feeling somewhat unsteady as a result of the moments between recasts.

"That… that's why you bought the other purple orb… at this rate, I think I really will develop a fear of heights!" Sol yelled, his eyes shut tight.

"Yeah. But you have to admit, it was awesome." Still grinning, Alex kept flying for as long as he was able, towards the Punk's territory.

***************************************************

Sometime later, the two were in the tent with Richie, talking about what had happened. The location of the second statue, the Alto Angelo they had bound and surgically removed pieces from, in an attempt to replicate its armor, and their plan to conquer the world once they were done with whatever had brought them here.

Sol had taken the time to sit down and reflect on the day, or what passed for one here. He was slowly massaging the knuckles of his left hand, occasionally feeling a spasm and moment of weakness while occasionally giving his interpretation of the events. "So, like we said before, they still have a good amount of people up there. But, the rank and file aren't too difficult to take out, especially now that they might be more leery of using their fancy armors." Sol said absentmindedly.

"Conversely, the Leader is a bigger problem. He gains strength and speed while near the army - or when they are fighting for him. The specifics are unclear." Alex continued, pacing to and fro in the tent in front of the map. "His armor makes him resistant to more glancing blows and he has wings, although I haven't seen him use them yet."

Richie nodded, looking down at the map. "I see. It's going to be… difficult. The tower only has one entrance and it's guarded. The area around it is bare, too, so reaching it in secret may prove difficult."

Sol paused and let out a long-suffering sigh before posing a question, "We could try from the sky?"

He got up and pointed at some of the buildings on the map. "We may not be able to get on the roof per se, but we could get from one building into a midpoint of theirs. Though, that runs the risk of dividing our forces between them."

"Note that I can only bring one other with me while flying. And I need them to be… somewhat my size." Alex pointed out, before frowning at the map. "There aren't any underground passages that reach the Tower, are there? You said something about it, I think?"

Richie tapped the map briefly, smiling. "Sort of. There's a sewer line that runs throughout this area. City plans had these lines wide enough for multiple people to travel inside for maintenance purposes. It's not pretty and it'll probably be noisy but, we could probably find a wall that connects to a basement there and punch on in through there."

"I think I have an idea." Alex piped up, a spark shining in his eyes. "It's going to be a bit complicated, so listen to me. We're going to start with…"

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So, yeah a lot of things happened in this chapter. Boss fights, new enemies, body horror, and even medical horror! Without getting too much into things, we're almost done with this arc, with one more chapter to go. I said earlier this week I was going to post the item shop menu for Alex and Sol, but I think with this chapter, it would be more appropriate. Plus... and unfortunately, life and technology got in the way. Seriously, the sites are being a pain with attaching pictures.

Enjoy everyone.

 

[Atma]

Over the next few hours of planning, darkness had descended on the copied city as a demon of truly gargantuan size slowly moved across the sun. As the new 'morning' rose, the nazi that had been tasked with watch duty gave his report to his supervisor and went to catch some sleep.

Sadly for him, he wouldn't get to sleep at all. In fact, the alarm sirens started echoing through the tower a few minutes after the light of the sun had reestablished itself onto the city when the new watcher saw that there was a veritable army moving towards the Tower. Well, an army was a big word to use, but it was most of the Punks, along with Richie, that was coming towards the Tower like a pack of hell hounds. Ten more were jumping from roof to roof with Alex at the helm, proudly flying in front of everyone else, as a massive 'fuck you' to the nazis in the tower.

In the depths of the building, Sol and ten more punks blasted their way in. With the sounds of battle manifesting on three fronts, the nazis scrambled to their defenses. However, it wouldn't be enough. Alex started the assault with a barrage of bullets, before finally managing to destroy the gate with a charged bullet. The resulting explosion was the first signal for the underground team to be ready.

The nazis scrambled to their defenses, but they didn't manage much before Alex hit the outer doors. The doors were sent flying inside, now mere twisted remnants of what they once were. That let the group of Punks stream inside, meeting the nazis face to face. While they could have met the punks with some degree of success, the nazis quickly faced another problem. From behind their ranks, Sol and the punks with him had arrived.

"Abyssal Punch!!!" Sol roared as red demonic energy flooded from his arm and charged his punch. The chest of the nazi he targeted detonated and they fell back into the crowd in a boneless heap.

"No Quarter!" Sol shouted to the ten punks with him before joining the fray.

Alex smirked before he bellowed out a challenge to the Leader, his voice roaring, displaying his whole might since the start of his summoning. "COME AND FACE ME, IF YOU DARE!"

The shout was so powerful that made everyone in the room cower a bit and cover their eyes, while the glass windows vibrated from it. Sol had just slashed the throat of another nazi before looking up to where the noise came from.

"Alright everyone, finish them off and make your way upstairs. Avoid the elevators, they could cut the cables." Sol shouted over the din before turning to the stairwell and ascending. He had climbed several flights of stairs, hearing several punks trailing behind him before a door was thrown from its hinges in front of Sol. Before he could react, a clawed hand grabbed him by the neck and threw him into the room.

"What did you do to me!? I can't turn the armor off! I can't do anything with it!" The figure raged.

Sol recognized the second Deformato he created. He then spotted several punks looking in, before he quietly signaled them to continue on and faced down the Deformato.

Raising his arm, Sol stated hotly "We're both pumping demonic power into ourselves, I just made you honest about it."

"Damn YOU!" The Deformato roared and charged at him.

******************************

While the inside of the Tower turned into a battleground to rival an ancient war, the outside was… increasingly calm. Alex had flown upwards, as fast as he could, until he had reached the roof. On it, as he had expected, the Leader was waiting for him, already shining a pale gold, his wings extended and floating there.

"So, you've come. What, you don't have enough people? Your running away yesterday has filled you with bravery?" His tone was obviously mocking, but Alex simply smiled and stepped down on the roof, Calcabrina back in his hands.

"I remember singing a serenade for you before getting away. Not exactly the behavior of someone that's running, now, is it?" Alex asked mockingly.

******************************

Sol was forced to use Time Step to dodge the strikes by the Deformato. It wasn't that it was faster than the one Sol had inadvertently created earlier. It was that the pain had faded and the Deformato was fueled by directed anger and rage, focused directly at Sol. This didn't prevent Gevaudan from carving a deep gash in its side.

"Gah!!! Stand Still!" The Deformato roared.

"What and make it easy? This is a world where you try to rule without humanity. Deal with it." Sol stated before raising both Gevaudan and his new shotgun.

******************************

Alex kept the staring contest between himself and the Leader going for a few seconds more before he vanished from sight in a spontaneous Blink and tried to land on the Leader from above. Alex only managed a long scratch on the armor, but he also didn't fall down from the Tower, so there was that.

"Mutt! Insolent traitor! I will skin you and burn you alive!" The nazi shouted while taking the long way around and attempting a flyby on Alex, a giant sword made of light firmly in his hands.

Alex just smiled and shot forward, his feet easily finding the flat side of Calcabrina.

*****************************

The shotgun blast didn't do much to the Deformato, but it was enough to blind it momentarily. With the opportunity presented, Sol loosened Gevaudan and wrapped it around the Deformato's neck, and tossed it through a wall.

In the ensuing dust cloud blinded Sol for a moment, but a moment was more than enough for the Deformato to leap up and tackle him through the opposing wall. Sol managed to free himself through a punch that left a sizable dent in the Deformato's skull. It thrashed backwards and the two eventually squared off against each other.

******************************

Alex and the Leader clashed several times in succession, the larger blade of the nazi hitting the cane-sword that Alex was brandishing. Each meeting caused a ringing of steel to echo in the air, but neither of them was gaining any advantage over the other.

Alex was in a slightly worse position, though, because of his lesser maneuverability in the air. Still, he was more than a match for the leader.

At least, until he started blasting down with rays of light that easily pierced the stone that made the tower.

"Stay still and die like the bug you are!"

******************************

Sol glared at the figure and decided it was time to end this. He raised the shotgun and fired. The Deformato tried to dodge but the wound to its eye slowed it down. The pellets threw it off its game, partially spinning it to the side and Sol was on it. Using the knowledge that the statue gave him, he unleashed Thriller. The resulting series of slashes tore through Deformato's armored body leaving weeping wounds. Sol took a step back and leaped up before coming down.

"Breakaton!" He shouted and he slashed down. Gevaudan cleaved through the Deformato from head to groin. Tearing Gevaudan free, Sol watched the Deformato collapse into a mass of red orbs. Content with the end of the fight, Sol rejoined the rest of the conflict.

******************************

Alex managed to avoid several shots from the Leader, seemingly waiting for something. Then, that something did finally happen.

The glow around the Leader started to diminish. Only a little bit, at first, before falling rather rapidly.

"What…" The nazi choked out, before falling toward the roof, his wings suddenly not working anymore. He slammed against the concrete, leaving a deep imprint on it, and then stood there, motionless.

"What… happened…" He managed to choke out, while Alex simply walked to him.

"Simple: your soldiers are being slaughtered. I was a distraction, the army outside was a distraction, the true attack came from the sewers. A pincer maneuver, with a twist: there were three parts to it, not just two." Calcabrina vanished inside the inventory, before Seraphim appeared in his hands.

"You see, I'm not so arrogant to think that you are stupid. You are the right kind of smart that can control a bunch of nazis, after all." Without taking care of what the Leader was attempting to say, Alex put the tip of the staff right on the forehead of the nazi leader. "So, you must have some kind of intelligence. I just banked on your arrogance and superiority complex. I mean, your enemies were punks and two people that ran from you just the day before. It was obvious that they would join forces and attack you. It was obvious that they would go for the full frontal attack. And it was obvious that they would have something in reserve, like an attack from the roofs." He placed the bottom tip of his weapon against the forehead of the nazi leader, his expression a mask of coldness.

A moment of silence. Then…

"You… played…. me…." The Leader rattled out, his breath going fainter and fainter, the glow around him now completely gone. Alex chuckled.

"Like the cheap kazoo you are. Now, goodbye forever." Seraphim's feather fan opened and vibrations traveled down the ribbons and the shaft, until it exploded out from the tip at the bottom in a tight cone of sound that splattered the head of the nazi leader in red and gray paste.

"And so it ends."

**************************************************

Sol followed the signs of battle, passing several punks tending to their wounds and bodies of nazis that had been patrolling the upper floors. He made it past the Alto dissection room and came across Alex.

"It's done?" He asked simply.

Alex didn't say anything, he just remained on the floor, his torso propped against the wall and his head thrown back, eyes towards the ceiling. Not that it matters, he had his eyes closed.

Still, he answered Sol's question. "He died like a dog."

That was probably one of the harshest sentences that he had ever said. Even then, unbidden, he kept speaking.

"It was just a simple game of keep-away. I had only to stall for a few moments, you and the punks did the heavy lifting. He literally fell on his back like a beached turtle." One of his hands waved in the air. "I did basically nothing. And I got Fifty Thousand Red Orbs for playing at being an executioner." Alex then lapsed into a pregnant silence for a moment as he said nothing else. Only a little hiccup escaped his lips before his expression smoothed back down into pallidness.

Sol didn't say anything when he heard the hiccup, merely looked at his left hand, clenched and relaxed it several times, and moved past Alex to look at the skyline.

In an attempt to put the inevitable discussion aside for a little while, Sol began to speak. "I guess now that that has been handled we can move on, maybe find our way to the next ring or level through the sewers. I doubt it'll be a nice trip, but I don't know about you, but I really want to meet the son of a bitch who sent us here and deliver a formal complaint."

"I can imagine what you mean by 'formal complaint'. And I'm in favor of it, no doubt." Alex answered, still not looking at Sol. "But I need a couple of moments more. Before... Before we take the Alto Angelo, put an end to his suffering and use his parts as replacements. I do want to be free of the risk of killing myself with my own power. And the Alto Angelo is the only other humanoid demon that I have found lately."

He lapsed into silence for a long moment, before exhaling. "But… give me a few minutes. I need to… I need to… I need... I need a moment."

Silence.

Sol put his hand, his human hand, on Alex's shoulder. "Take as much time as you need. I'm feeling... okay with this. They would have I'll be with the Alto, and I still have the eyes if you need them." Sol said, his voice choking up ever so slightly before he attempted to leave the room.

Alex's hand on his own stopped him.

"Talk to me. I need to be distracted. You need to unload. I need to unload. Choose a reason, I'm not picky. I don't want to be alone with my thoughts right now." His tone wasn't pleading, but almost.

Sol was quiet for a few moments before lowering his arm. "You know when… when Geryon struck you, I damn near lost it. People used to joke that I have a martyr complex about things. I guess it manifested there. I made a promise to myself then and there, that I wouldn't let you be alone in the process that saved your life… I'd have wanted it on my own terms, but we can't change the past, no matter how much we try…"

Sol raised his demonic arm to Alex. "This is a test… a long-term test of our humanity, and unlike these fucks." Sol spat, "We're not letting this place warp us, and we're not being Arkham's vying for stolen power, losing our humanity like that fuck Allan. At a basic level, like I said before, I'm okay with what we had to do today. If we prevent people like this or the Red Eyes from escaping here and wreaking god knows what sort of havoc on the world, I can live with that. I could look at myself in the mirror and I can live with that."

Alex shivered. "You are right. Without a doubt. And he was a nazi. And I have tried to not kill anyone. And I still did it, I'm not making excuses, I'm offering explanations, no matter what others might say. But it still… It's… It's not like Red Eyes or the demons or even the guy that attacked me while in the mall. He was… I made the plan that ended with him being killed. With all the people down there killed. And I'm… I have… Can I really go home like this?"

Sol took a moment to think the question over before he responded. "I guess we're going to have to… We're not chosen ones sent to battle a great evil, we're the sacrifices to it, or at least we're meant to be. If we don't stop it here… then it'll just keep doing it again and again. I think all we can really do is just move forward and hope that our actions save more lives than destroy," Sol paused for a moment before finishing with, "Or at the very least avenge those that were lost."

Alex stilled for a moment before he exhaled all he had in his lungs and nodded. "You're right. Also… I have an inkling that we are not going to be able to go back home. I… You know how I got the latest Magic Knowledge that the statue offered, yes? Well…" He seemed rather choked up, but he tried to continue.

"Where we are from… it sounds like… The dimensional barriers. The Qliphoth is… Look, I'm trying to say that…." The more he tried to explain, the less he managed to say.

"This demon fucked us in more ways than one." Sol finished before looking towards the skyline.

There was an expression of anger on his face, a quiet fury that seemed to seethe as he looked onto the mimicry city. As if reciting a line, Sol began to speak. "Be you angel or demon… you will regret giving us this accursed power."

"Was that a quote?" Alex asked, his mood broken by the sudden sentence, a bewildered look on his face.

"Yeah… Gale of the Embyron..." Sol replied while beginning to hold his left arm before continuing. "We're going to kill that bastard, one way or another."

"I find myself in perfect accord with what you just said: whoever or whatever brought us here… will not escape with a house on the head. There's no ruby slippers for them to send us back home with them unscathed." Alex's face was now back into his bland smile, but his eyes… they were cold, a silver light that shone like a torch in the darkness. Then, as that coldness came, it went, leaving him looking a bit more normal. "At least we didn't end up in Shin Megami Tensei. I mean, it's not like Warhammer 40k or Worm or similar, but still…"

"I'm with you. I'd rather not be dealing with nukes, psychotic angels, or any of the other cornucopia of nightmares that could exist there." Sol finished before giving Alex a look. "Are you feeling better?"

"I'm feeling like myself." Alex's answer was a non-answer, in truth, but still better than before. "I'm feeling like I need to eat a crapton of chocolate in various forms, pizza and soda and candies and whatever else comes to mind. I want to sit in front of a computer and read for hours. I want to go back home. But I cannot. I know that I cannot. And I also know that I - and you, I'm so sorry for this - will not be able to return."

His expression was somber. "There's only one way for us to go back home with a hundred percent success rate: eat the Qliphoth's fruit. That alone - unless you want to sacrifice the entire population of New York or London - would give me enough power to rip open the dimensional membrane, create a passageway that can stay solid for enough time for us to travel through it and not destroy us when the physics of reality reassess themselves upon our bodies."

Sol gave a mirthless laugh, "We're not taking that option. I want to go home, I truly do. But I'm not about to kill innocent people en masse for that to happen. I truly couldn't live with myself if that's what it took."

He turned to Alex. "If preventing more of this happening means I stay here in this world then so be it. There's always other options, we'll just need to find them. Dante made it to SMT, maybe we could hitch a ride on the Amala Network?"

Alex blinked at Sol for a moment, before something seemed to… click, for lack of a better word, inside him.

"The Amala Network… no. No offense, but I want to stay as far away from that specific iteration of YHVH as possible. But…" He seemed to sketch something in the air with his fingers, something that shone silver for a moment, the air itself shivering and twisting slightly.

"At the end of Devil May Cry Five, there's a dimensional rip right at the top of the Qliphoth, after the duel between Dante and Vergil, remember? I can use that. It's gonna be rough, but I can use that." Alex began before smiling. "It's not going to be precise or anything, but I can… basically throw us somewhere else than here. Somewhere where the edges of the dimensional barriers are less solid."

Sol snapped his fingers "Yes! Yes, that could work!" Sol responded, matching Alex's enthusiasm. He turned back to the skyline, "We're going to beat you! We're going to win!"

"Suck it!" Alex joined Sol in his shouting, laughing like madmen all the time.

The Punks that had just reached the entrance and were choosing what to do stopped moving for a long moment, before looking at each other and, silently, stepped back, closing the door and leaving the two madmen alone.

*************************************************************

The duo standing in front of the bound Alto Angelo were mostly silent while studying the chains that kept the angelic-looking demon tied down.

"So…" Alex started, looking at the places where the chain connected to the wall. "Do we break the wall and bring the whole thing with us? Or just kill the demon and sever the chains?"

"I…I guess." Sol said while looking at the body with no small degree of horror. "It's best that you do, though… how much do you think is left?" Sol asked.

"So, here's a little tidbit of nightmare fuel for you." Alex's tone was far too cheery. "You see the Alto Angelo in front of us? The one that looks like a torture victim? It's still alive."

"And they called themselves human." Sol said bitterly before looking around the room. "I'll see what else I can find here… end that thing's suffering."

"While it would be the humane thing to do - and isn't it ironic, coming from my mouth - a dead demon starts to vanish and we need it as intact as possible. So, we'll search together, then we will move to the statue as fast as we can." Alex kept his tone light, but he still moved, starting to look around the shelves and the crates all around the room. "Let's get a move on: I'm tired of this."

Sol nodded before sorting through whatever he could find. There were files catered everywhere but he managed to find a few that were still relatively together and he began to read some of them.

<Date Unknown, Location Red Grave City. The city name was provided to us by a resident who had joined the cause sometime prior to arrival. Time and date are difficult to get an exact read on, as a large demonic entity seems to move across the sun at irregular intervals. We will be referring to these day-to-night transitions as cycles.>

Sol paused and searched the papers for more information on the Alto Angelo. He didn't find anything on it per se but he discovered more.

<Cycle 5, Location Redgrave City. The subhumans, both full-blooded and tainted, have fully sullied their bodies through demonic prostheses. Proof of their weakness, both physically and mentally. We have found a means to circumvent that weakness through our own superior intellect. We have discovered several demons clad in armor and with the power of the statue, we could harness that armor safely and surely…>

There was more.

<We have successfully created an armor system based on what we have taken to calling the Great Angel. We may have lost some members of our burgeoning empire to capture it, but their sacrifices were needed. Unfortunately, our enemies have tainted their lesser bodies too much for proper testing, so we'll test the system on some of our weaker members. Should the control device work, it combined with the power of the statue will assure our victory over this realm. A new future is ahead of us, we must take it for the pure. D. Ofnir.>

"You did all that, and we still ripped you guys to pieces," Sol muttered, more to himself than anyone else.

"Alex," He began, still looking at the note. "May have found something, but nothing concrete as to how they did it, just how and why they captured the Alto Angelo here," Sol said while handing Alex the files he found.

"Whoever this Ofnir guy is, I hope he died painfully." Sol said quietly.

"I'm going with him being the scientist that did all of…" Alex waved his hand towards the bound demon. "This. On my side, I haven't found anything. Lots of tools and… assorted equipment, probably something to make those armors, but nothing particularly… Oh." Alex's sudden silence was louder than any word that he could say.

"Yeah, no need to say…" Sol began before Alex interjected.

"No, not… Look." He took a few steps to the side and showed the spidery runes that formed the magical circle on the wall. They were glowing, for some strange reason, a menacing white that instilled in them a strange feeling of terror.

"They are different. I don't know how, but they are different." Alex pointed out.

"Let's look around for more files, maybe they could explain something about this array," Sol said, trying to shield his eyes from the runes.

"I hope." Alex answered before they started looking all over again.

However, it appeared that scientists had either found nothing, or the runes were a recent development. Considering the situation and effort in the room's set up, the last one was the more probable.

"I haven't found anything. You?" Alex asked, moving another crate of useless mechanical trinkets to the side.

"No… wait hold on." Sol said as he began to read a series of papers.

<Cycle 7, Location: Redgrave City. We've been having a difficult time keeping the Great Angel contained. Yes we have used physical cages to maintain a sense of separation, yes we have 'given' it lesser demons to consume for sustenance, but it is too willful. The Great Angel must learn to bow before its betters! We have some time, but the subhumans are whittling our numbers. We need this demon's armor and we need it now! D.Ofnir.>

Sol kept reading.

<Cycle 8, Location: Redgrave City. We may have had a breakthrough. One of our middle-ranked members, a Karl Raines, recently purchased the magic capacity. While I believe that science is a more stable and proactive method of our progression, the results have begun to speak for themselves. Raines utilized his new capacity with runes he had been learning, rather he had been reading from the Edda, and the tale of Fenrir's imprisonment. It is no chain, but it is keeping the Great Angel in a consistent location. D,Ofnir.>

<Cycle 11, Location Redgrave City. Extracting material from the Great Angel has been an exhaustive affair. Not in the actual removal of said material, but in keeping the demon docile enough to do so. Breaking the runic line seems to cause an immediate and violent reaction. This shouldn't be a problem, but the materials used to create the line are flimsy and fragile, hence easily broken. Raines has also become a problem himself, demanding that he be given greater access to the Great Angel for his efforts. I have studied medical sciences for years, endured humiliating circumstances, and I will not let this up-jumped street performer upstage me… Since he is such a fan of the Poetic Edda, I think I should expand his knowledge of it. There was an old ritual known as the blot. Most of the time, animals were used but there were occasions where a human offering was given unto Odin. I'm sure that in this place, blood will act as a more permanent binding material, and besides, no one said that I couldn't buy that capacity either. D.Ofnir.>

"Alex," Sol called out. "Looks like this Ofnir started using blood sacrifices for his work… and stabbed his aid in the back." Sol finished while handing Alex the files.

"He does mention runes… Do you think that the runic circle there is the remains of that ritual? It would explain the location, why it was hidden, and why there weren't any mentions of it in the files…" Alex mused, looking at the white runes.

"Still, the main question is… Do we attempt to use them?" His eyes searched for Sol's eyes, waiting for his answer.

"You need that demon alive, and considering its current state even if it were to attack we could still kill it easily. So I say we wipe the runes away and end its suffering." Sol said grimly.

"Makes sense." Alex touched the runes, ready to wipe them away. And then the duo of them were in a white space, on a circular platform made of white stone, with thirteen pillars around it. In front of them, a man in a white doctor's coat, his face a disfigured mess of blood and cuts, with hands ending in talons, two white bat-like wings sprouted from his back, and a series of snakes sprouting from a hole in the place where his navel should be.

"Ahahahahah… Other sacrifices? Other test subjects? Yes, yes, yes, more tests… AhahahahAHAHAHAHHA!"

Sol let out a sigh. "So that's why we didn't see or know of you?" Sol looked at Alex, "Alex, I think we just found our Arkham."

"Or equivalent, yeah." Alex's answer was filled with sadness. "We're going to release him from this prison, I'm guessing? Well, how do you want to deal with him?"

"End him, better we do it than have another potential Red Eye out about," Sol said in resignation before drawing Gevaudan and his shotgun.

"Eh, true. " Seraphim appeared in Alex's hands, while his face settled. "I'll give you ranged support, you go in close. Let's do this fast."

"Alright," Sol said before whipping Gevaudan at who he assumed was Ofnir.

"You fools, how could ever hope t…Gurk!" The deranged man was cut off as Gevaudan's coils wrapped around his neck. Sol pulled the man closed and struck up.

"Abyssal Punch! Blast him now Alex!" Sol shouted as Ofnir went into the sky of the void, with red, demonic, energy burned off him in waves.

Alex just aimed Seraphim, and a tight beam of sound shot toward the demonically altered human soul, hitting him straight in the chest and perforating it. He didn't bleed, though, as only more snakes came out and tried to bite Sol wherever they could reach.

"Do you have to call the name of the attack every time you use it?"

"Absolutely! It's no Falcon Punch, but any super punch deserves to pay homage to that move." Sol said while slicing several more serpents that slithered out from Ofnir.

"What manner of inanity is this!?" Ofnir shouted as he got back to his feet.

"It's a highly important conversation for people who did not become weird snake-batmen," Sol said simply.

"Also fuck you." Alex answered, shooting three more waves of sound, before charging a bullet on the top of the feathered part of the fan. "Sol, dodge when I give the signal."

"Understood." Sol responded.

The battle continued for a few moments more, the demon-soul completely outclassed, until Alex shouted a sudden "NOW!" that echoed even over the chaos of the battlefield.

Sol dropped and rolled out of whatever attack Alex had planned without hesitation. The bullet that Alex unleashed was bigger than his usual fair. As a result, the explosion was much more powerful. Whatever that soul or demon was, it ended up shattered into thousands of pieces, that soon were starting to smoke and vanish away. Then, a moment after, the two of them were back in the lab, with a purple orb floating in front of them.

Alex blinked. "I didn't expect this. Anyway, you want it?"

"No, you better take it. You may need the power with our friend here." Sol said, gesturing to the Alto Angelo. Or he would have if said Alto Angelo hadn't collapsed on the floor in front of them in a heap of twisted limbs.

'I think we should get him and you to the statue now." Sol said quickly.

"Yeah." Alex grabbed the purple orb - which melted into his body - and went to the other side of the Alto Angelo, grabbing it by the shoulder - what remained of it, anyway - and started sprinting up the stairs.

"Let's get moving on!"

**********************************************

The sprint up the stairs while carrying a demon that was clearly dying was a strange sight for the punks milling about. For Alex and Sol, the situation didn't even rate a four on the strangeness scale. Still, they entered the top room with a screech of soles on stone, making the group that was around the Divinity Statue jump in fright.

"What the hell?!" "Is that another nazi?" "What is that-holy fuck!" "The nazi tortured a demon?" "What is even happening…?"

"In that order, it's us, no it's a demon, there is nothing holy about this, yes, and he's using it to finish his hybridization." Sol finished while pointing at Alex.

"Yeah, so. I need the statue." Alex's words were calm and polite, but all the Punks in between them and the statue moved to the side, forming a parade for them. They didn't wait a moment more.

With a simple touch, the white gold space of the Watcher of Time manifested around them. "Ok, so I need the internal organ. I think you can empower your arm some more, but let me do this first." Alex nodded at Sol's demonic arm, before he started tapping at the screens in front of him, dismissing the ones that called on the demon's loaned power and found the option rather quickly.

Alto Angelo Perfect Hybridization (Lungs, Part of Stomach, Part of Intestine) (This option will completely Hybridize the subject): 75.000 Red Orbs.

Alex started smiling. "It's here. It's really here!" He didn't start to laugh, but it was a near thing. Without waiting, he tapped on the option and, gleefully, saw his Red Orb counter drop by the required amount.

Then, he stepped back and let Sol do whatever he wanted to do.

"Take it all and finish what you need to do first, I've still got the eyes and I think I could get Rodin to do something with them. Besides, I'm not in that bad of a condition… I'll probably grab some Blue Orbs and Physical boost. while I'm here." Sol said easily.

"Nah, I'm done. I want to see what happens after the hybridization is complete and I don't want to risk anything else. You know that changes are delayed until we are out of the Statue's space. Go finish what you need to do." Alex encouraged Sol to go on, smiling warmly.

"Alright," Sol said before opening the menus. The purchases came easily and Sol watched as 9,000 and 25,000 Red Orbs bled away respectively.

"That's two Blue Orbs and one Advanced Physical Enhancement," Sol said as the feeling of strength and vitality settled in. His arm began to spasm again and he clutched it tightly.

"I'll try to hold off on 'that' as much as possible. I'll want a stronger demon before I make that final change." Sol said with some strain.

"Stronger than an Alto Angelo? Remember that they need to be humanoid." Alex reminded him, his expression morphed into a worried one. "Don't wait too much: remember what happened to me after the Red Eyes attack."

"Yeah…" Sol said before something seemed to click with him. "Alto Angelo, a being evoking light… Maybe, maybe go the opposite route. There was a basis for them, right? Kinda feel like it would be Karma to use one of those demons." Sol said with an odd smirk. "Figure a certain white-haired man obsessed with power should pay some of it back right?"

"I seriously doubt you are going to be able to get Vergil to give you one of his limbs, but feel free to try." Alex's answer was dry as dust, but a bright spark of amusement danced in his eyes.

"Nelo Angelo was Vergil. That means… Well, we either find a Proto Angelo somewhere or you take the Alto. Choose, though, because I don't know how much more the demon will resist, especially after part of its inside has been removed."

"Nah that deadbeat took a limb and still lost, I'll take from the Proto though. It's relatively strong and even a failed copy still holds an echo of power." Sol said with a slight flourish.

Alex smiled, before shaking his head. "And where are you going to find a Proto Angelo? Here, specifically? I was surprised by the appearance of the Alto Angelo when Rodin…" Then, Alex lapsed into silence, looking at Sol.

"You want to ask Rodin to find a piece of music that will attract a Proto Angelo." Notably, it wasn't a question.

"You know, that's not a bad idea. But the question remains where would be best to do so? Maybe the next level will have it." Sol responded.

"No, the question is: HOW is Rodin going to craft such a CD? He doesn't have anything for it. Except…" His eyes dropped on the Alto Angelo. "I may have an idea."

"Shoot." Sol replied.

"The Alto Angelo. It is a crafted demon, after all, and it possibly came from the Proto Angelo. So, if we bring this…" Alex gestured at the demon still held in their hands. "... to him, he may be able to do what we are asking. Do you think it's worth a try?"

"Yeah, yeah no that could work. Hell maybe to attract a Proto all Rodin would have to do is invert the track? Let's try it." Sol said, a grin creeping on his face.

"May as well try. You do know what it entails, though, right?" Alex smiled, wickedly. "The entrance to Rodin's bar is pretty far and the Alto Angelo has already started to degrade. If we want to reach it in time, we'll have to fly, and I cannot balance the Alto Angelo, keep myself stable, and guide the flight alone."

His smile was a thing of beautiful wickedness.

"I hate you so much now," Sol said with a suffering tone.

********************************************

The shape of two guys balancing themselves on an umbrella, flying in the air, while holding the slowly disappearing corpse of a demon between the two of them, was a rather odd sight to see. What made the scene stranger, was the fact that one of the figures was screaming at the top of their lungs for the speed the umbrella was going and the sudden stop and starts that, every now and then, made the whole thing dip dangerously.

*********************************************

The entrance to Rodin's bar flared red and Sol and Alex landed inside, with only the upper parts of the Alto Angelo remaining.

Rodin turned towards them with a surprised look on his face. "You did it, I see." He nodded at Alex.

Sol collapsed into a chair and rubbed his face, muttering along the lines "Sweet merciful ground, your wisdom is absolute."

"Drama queen," Alex muttered towards Sol, before smiling at Rodin. "Yeah, yeah, I did it. Anyway, Sol wanted to ask you something. It's tied to this." He raised the remaining parts of the Angelo, before kicking Sol lightly to make him move.

"Gah! What? Oh, right… So, uh I lost my arm, I think a day or so ago and replaced it. But I've been experiencing muscle spasms and I'm looking to take on a certain demon to perfect the process. We thought that you could use the leftover parts of this Alto Angelo to make another CD and attract a Proto Angelo." Sol said while lifting up his left arm.

"Mmhh…." Rodin grabbed the remains of the demon and moved it to the counter, observing it carefully. "Tricky. Not impossible, but tricky. You're saying that this… 'Proto Angelo' is a more powerful version of this one?" His question was mostly rhetorical, but both Alex and Sol nodded.

"I can do something like that… But it will cost you." Rodin's white teeth shone against his dark skin, his eyes gleaming momentarily ruby red.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So, this chapter was supposed to come out on Wednesday and due to a variety of personal issues, I was unable to post on that day, and the next few days to follow. As such, I will try to post the next chapter tomorrow, that way we can get back on track with the posting schedule.

Enjoy Everyone.

 

[Atma]

Sol looked at Rodin and nodded. "How many red orbs you want, I'll pay it forward. Besides that's not all I want." Sol finished before placing the canister of the Alto Angelo eyeballs on the counter along with the shotgun.

"I lost my old handgun with my arm… I probably should find it but… Maybe it could throw some people off the trail. I guess it doesn't matter at this point, what matters now is that I want a little more bang for my buck. Any chance these could be integrated with the shotgun?" Sol asked, gesturing to the eyes.

Rodin eyeballed the jar on the table and the corpse of the demon, before sighing. "You'll send me into debt. 30.000 Red Orbs for both."

It was pretty clear that he was selling at a discount, but he had decided to do so for some reason.

Sol wincing, handed over the red orbs with much complaint. "It'll pay for itself in the end."

"Definitely. A good weapon is worth more than its weight in gold. Now, sit down and drink something. I'll be back soon-ish." Rodin rose into the air, before vanishing inside the red circle that had manifested behind him.

Alex took his words as true and started pouring himself something that smelled strongly of chocolate and sugar.

"Want anything?" His question was directed straight at Sol.

"Eh… I would have gone with something alcoholic but I'll go with whatever you've got. I'm not sure how I'm doing internally and would really not want to suffer at the wrong time if I don't have to." Sol replied, looking at his hand and slowly massaging the knuckles.

"You know what's weird? I keep looking at it and I tell myself that it's not my hand. Yet… if I don't tell myself that, I wouldn't even realize it unless I mentally tell myself that… I'm going to have to invest in long gloves to hide it." Sol said.

Alex passed him a glass of the same thing he was drinking. When Sol tried it, he would discover that it was more than a bit alcoholic.

In the meantime, the full hybrid swished his glass in a small circle. "Mhhh... Well, I understand how you feel. I always expect to see my old gut every time I look down. And the nails… Or the hair. Really, just the fact that I'm slim it's a huge adjustment. And that's without speaking about the other physical changes."

Alex gestured at all of himself. "It will take time. But it's still my body, it feels like my body and I'm happy with it, all things said. I still wake up in the night with nightmares about what happened - well, when we can manage to sleep more than a couple of hours, anyway. And that's how it is." He downed the rest of his drink with a long pull, before pouring himself another one from the bottle.

"There are other things that have changed: I react faster than before, much faster. I can break a stone wall with a hand and not feel any kind of pain. But, in the end, I'm still me. The reading-obsessed guy that you found when you woke up on the floor, in that room."

"First." Sol began raising a hand. "That's kinda strong, but it is nice, so a very good choice. Second, now that you bring it up, I'm expecting to be cleaning my glasses every five seconds, and… I just feel strong. I can see how the others became so… addicted to that." Sol finished before drinking a large amount of the glass.

Savoring the taste, Sol raised a finger, "You think we have any of that stuff still inside of us? I mean we haven't used it or bought into it but, well outside of Rodin, Sparda, and several other demons, most are self-serving and deceitful or just attack dogs with extra steps."

Alex stopped for a moment. Then raised a finger, mouth half open, and lowered it instantly after.

"I…. I don't know. Give me a few minutes, I need to meditate. You drink. I have the feeling that you need it. And I will after I'm done meditating." This said, Alex stalked towards a small couch on the side of the bar and sat down, starting to breathe slowly and deeply.

Sol was slightly alarmed by Alex's response and didn't even hesitate before topping off. "Oh I really hope I didn't just kick over a mental hornet's nest," he said before taking a sip.

***********************************

Rodin reappeared with a flash of red light, a few scratches on his arms that were healing as he got up from his slightly crouched position. "It is done. The CD is-"

"OH, THAT ABSOLUTE SON OF A BITCH!" Alex's shout shook the entire bar, his fury so strong that the very air was tinged silver. And the glass that Sol was holding was suddenly full again, as time was rewound.

Rodin only raised a single eyebrow. "What happened to him?"

Sol looked back and forth between the two before addressing. "I think the great voice in the sky just pulled a fast one on the Statue of Infinity."

Sol looked at Alex, "On a scale of One to ten, how bad is it?"

Alex didn't even answer, he just marched straight to Rodin with a scowl so deep on his face that he was leaving afterimages behind him. "Rodin. Would you be able to take out the power that a demon has left inside someone else and how much would it cost?"

He wasn't shouting. Yet. But it was hovering on that edge.

"Alex, what's going on?" Sol asked, concern evident.

"Whatever summoned us here lent us power, remember?" Alex's voice was vibrating with restrained fury. "And we never strengthened it. But the power didn't go away, as I thought it would. It's still there. Still inside me. Still inside you. And it's too dangerous to leave it there, so I want it out of me. And of you."

His eyes found Rodin's own. "How much to remove it and can you use it to craft a weapon? I'm not going to get used to it."

"You never used it?" Rodin seemed to ask again before continuing, "5,000. It should cover the costs and holding fees of that power." Rodin continued.

Sol tapped the bar briefly before saying, "That parasitic power shard of mine, use it for whatever Alex needs. I think I'm pretty well-rounded at this point."

Alex frowned. "You sure? You could strengthen a weapon or even… I don't know. I don't want to take something from you."

"No, it's fine. For one thing, I took that Geryon horn and blended it with my armor, so this is my way of paying you back. Second," Sol said while lifting the new weapon. "I have this, and I think I'll have a lot of fun with it."

"If you are sure. But I'm paying for both." Alex turned to Rodin and, before Sol could say anything, he nodded towards the fallen angel. "Do it."

The taller man pursed his lips for a moment, before bringing his hand back. "This may sting."

Then he drove the palm, the hand, and the entire forearm in Alex's chest, around his heart. It exploded from his back in a shower of red light, but there was no blood whatsoever. Instead, in his hand, there was a squirming red thing that looked a lot like a snake made of crystal.

"What in the goddamn?" Sol asked horrified, before killing his drink and nearly but not quite shouting to the fallen angel. "Get… that thing out of me!"

Before anything else could happen, Rodin performed the same maneuver on Sol. Sol dropped backward and clutched at his chest. "Fuck, that hurts! Gah! How… how long was that thing there?" Sol asked while sitting up.

"From the start, it seems. It has signs of long-term possession. But not a lot of strength." Rodin remarked before he dropped the two things in a jar, a pickle jar.

"Whatever you did to starve it, you did well. Even just a little bit of power and it would have sprouted like a seed. Grown inside you, until you would need to rely on it to even survive, no matter what power you had."

Alex growled an inhuman sound that made everything around him age rapidly, visibly decaying into wrecks of former furniture.

"Hey. You break anything, you pay for it." Rodin's admonishment was enough for Alex to snap back to normal, the time effect around him resetting and all the furniture returning to their normal look.

"Yeah, sure. Sorry."

Sol sat up and took at the two shards, "My demonology is a bit rusty but do either of you recognize what those could be from?" Sol asked.

**************************************

In the Heights of The Qliphoth​

The demon that resided in the shadows of battles long since passed stirred from its monitoring briefly. It had grown bloated and powerful from the human lives snuffed out within the depths. Yet for all that growth, there had been a disturbance. Brief and sharp, it noticed that two of its 'gifts' were cut off from the hosts they were attached to.

It normally wouldn't have cared too much though, they were weak hosts after all. However, the orbs that it should have received didn't manifest, and that concerned it. Its vision scoured over the depths that it had called its own. It passed over those who were well on their way to becoming demons but not quite there, the bodies of the slain, its lovely little pet project that it had molded so carefully and subtly, and any other remaining humans that existed.

However, it couldn't see what caused the disturbance. It would have to look harder, but that would come in time when it was stronger. After all, the Lusachia could already feel a second face growing alongside its body.

*******************************************

Alex shook his head. "Nothing. I would like to say something like Malphas or… I don't know. But it doesn't look like a part of them." With a frown, he put back up a stool that he had knocked down before. "I'm guessing we'll have to deal with it when we reach them. And kill them."

Rodin nodded, unconcerned, before tapping the CD that was still on the counter. "Your CD. Works like the last time, but I suggest you find a large space where you can maneuver."

"Thanks, I really mean it. You could have left us to rot. I know business is business, all that jazz and the bag of chips to go with it, but again thank you." Sol said before looking at the disc. It wasn't the gold disc from before, it looked more like a regular CD with an all-black finish. He put the disc away and grabbed the new weapon before considering something.

"This shotgun is looking more angelic than before… hmmm… maybe." Sol seemed to be lost in his musings before he began to hum something. He smiled as if remembering something.

"There was this old song I used to listen to. Haven't thought about it in years but… It was always nice. It was called 'What a Beautiful Sunset' by a band called Angelwing. The song itself was from an album called Nymphaeum… So I think that's what I'll call you, Nymphaeum." Sol said almost reverently before holstering the new weapon.

Alex smiled, before nodding at Rodin. "Thank you. I don't know what I can do to repay you, but, sincerely, thank you."

Then, the duo walked out of the Gates of Hell with their prizes, Rodin's eyes on their backs as he smirked at them.

*******************************************************

Making their way back to the Punks, Alex turned towards Sol, a dark look in his eyes. "Do you think we should…" And he jerked his head towards the Punk's current base of operations.

The silent question, coupled with the tap he gave to his own sternum, was pretty obvious.

Sol nodded before opening the lid to the manhole and descending into the darkness. It didn't take the two long to get to the planning room, exchange a few pleasantries, and find Richie. There was an expectant look from the older man and Sol began to try to find the best way to explain their next major complication.

"Listen we uh… we have something we need to tell you about."

Richie's expression, which had been one of contentedness and relief changed when he heard the tone of Sol's words, and gave the other man a hard look before wordlessly motioning him to continue.

Sol paused before continuing, "You've bought abilities with an L prefix, haven't you?"

Richie's eyes narrowed before he responded. "Yeah, everyone here has. Before we needed prostheses, it was the only thing keeping us on anything close to even footing with everything else here." He responded.

Alex winced, very visibly, which only made the entire group of people around the two look at them with a rather hard stare.

"What is it?" Richie asked, voice stony, a sort of tiredness weighing him on his shoulders.

"Yeah, ok, the problem is… Well, anything with that L that costs outrageously low… It's basically a trap from the demon that brought us here. We can't be completely sure..." Alex admitted for the first time, but he didn't let himself stop. "But, considering the clues that we have managed to put together, we are pretty sure that it works like a parasite: the demon offers us power at a cheap price and then takes it back to grow himself. A literal soul-sucking pyramid scheme."

Sol spoke up at this point, "We had ours removed a few minutes ago. It didn't really cost much for us, but I hate to say it, but for you all, that price is going to be higher."
The crowd began to curse and bicker among themselves, a few even addressed Sol and Alex, demanding why they hadn't told that sooner.

Sol looked at them all before sheepishly shrugging his shoulders. "We only just found out recently, and besides there is a silver lining to this. After that payment, no more demonic parasites wrapped around your hearts."

That got a few nods and stares from the crowd.

"Now I get that you're angry and believe us we were livid too, but knowing our collective troubles, there'll be more than enough demons to go around, and fingers crossed, you'll all rack enough orbs to cover the… exorcism, let's call it that." Sol finished.

"I mean…" Alex continued, a self-deprecating smile on his face "If I managed, you all can definitely do it."

That lame joke managed to steal a ragged cheer from the Punks, who started to plan all while bearing shaky smiles on their faces.

***************************************************************************

The Punks were waving at them. Well, those that had come to see them go, anyway. Most of the others were busy putting the Tower back up in place and, a few of them were leading an 'expedition' towards the Mall, to see if they could help the kids, and the rest were planning. It was something that Alex had said to Richie to try and shift things towards the better. It was a long shot, but better than anything else.

"So, where to now? We could try and fly up, try to see if we can see anything important. Or we can just go and travel at random, maybe we're going to get lucky. Or unlucky. I'm pretty sure that there isn't anything particularly different in this place."

Alex was walking without care, hands in his pockets, a strand of red-gold hair - he had gotten a streak of hair tinted red and gold from the Abyss and the Alto Angelo parts, right to the left side of the head, near the eye - having escaped from his ponytail and hanging near the side of his head.

"Well the only way to go is up, so down I guess. See if we could use the sewer system to find out if there's a route further down?" Sol asked, as not only was it their best option, but also because he'd rather not fly again.

"You know, I'm pretty sure that your Devil Trigger will have wings. Considering the Proto Angelo parts you want to use." Alex, 'casually' mentioned his theory, strolling down the street. "So, if you are saying no because of fear, you'll have to think about it."

Sol paused in mid-step and looked at Alex critically "Man, I will freaking hate that if you are right on that one." He said glumly. Yet as they walked, Sol switched back to the earlier point. "I figure we could use the sewer system and see if it connects to - I don't know - a subway or something, maybe a collapsed tunnel that is geographically impossible. You know, something like that."

"I mean, that could work. Considering how much logic has gone into the city, I'm kinda surprised we haven't found a subway station yet. Still, the city itself is a maze and the starting voice mentioned something about a center. We're going to need to go towards it and, if I'm correct, it will be near the main trunk of the Qliphoth."

Sol nodded and looked around till his eyes seemed to land on a point in the distance. "Guess we'll have to follow the roots then. At least they'll be consistent." He said with a shrug.

It was then that Sol saw something out of the corner of his eyes. At some further distance, he could see the tattered remains of a pant leg peeking out from a corner. Sol quietly pointed out to Alex and placed his hands on Gevaudan and Nymphaeum.

"Well, interesting." Alex simply said, before nodding towards it. "Shall we check it out?"

Sol didn't really wait for an answer he already knew of, he just started walking, only to the corner of the next building, where the street kept going for a while until it reached what looked like a small plaza packed with people. People that, even at a distance, they could recognize.

"Talk about the devil and here comes the tail. Aren't those people from the businessman and businesswoman group?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, they are…" Sol said while trailing off. He looked at Alex, a very worried look on his face before he spoke again. "Cassandra mentioned something around the time I killed her… Something about someone called Goode, you think that may be the businessman's name?"

Alex didn't move for a moment, before nodding slowly. "I mean… It's a possibility like any other. To be fair, not a single one of them had said their names, so…" And then he shrugged, before pointing at the street.

"What do we do? Search for another street or try to pass them?" Alex asked.

Sol began to count them up in his head before stopping and quietly said, "I think we should head back to Richie and his group. Let them know what we found and then make our way around them. We're good, better than when we last saw them, but I think I remember Rodin saying something in the first Bayonetta about quantity being a quality of its own."

Without much else, Sol began to turn, before stopping dead in his tracks. There, watching them with a strange and unsettling gaze, was the businessman. His hair was a mess and his suit hung off his frame in tatters exposing large swathes of his body, now heavily corded with lean muscle. The Bloody Mari dagger was clutched in his hand so tightly that his knuckles were white. His eyes seemed to lose focus briefly, before glancing between the two and he made a step forward.

"Sol and Alex, right?" He asked, his voice hoarse and strained, before his face bloomed into a sickeningly saccharine smile. "I'm so glad I saw you too, we really could use the help. After all, we're all part of the same group, right? It's only right that we all… stick together." He said with a slight hitch in his voice.

"If I remember correctly, both you and the other two groups left me and Sol behind to find… what? I don't even remember. I just remember you all leaving us behind because we couldn't be useful to you all." Alex responded in a hard tone.

"Oh, I know, yeah. I remember that. I'm going to put that under bad business decisions because look at you two now. You survived, you've changed too." The businessman said while taking another step further.

"I think in our case it may have been for the worse," Sol said in an attempt to mislead and deflect the businessman away from the more prominent differences.

"We almost died. A lot of times really. VERY bad business, that one." Alex added, changing his expression into a smile, with his eyes partially closed. So that nobody could see that he wasn't really genuine about the smile. Not that the subtle movement behind his back wasn't a hint about it, either.

The businessman nodded at that, his eyes slightly widening before he slowly pulled out a strange device from a pocket that had miraculously survived this far. "Speaking of bad business decisions, and please don't try to deny this, a friend of mine and I made a deal with some people that were around here. I know they're dead, I could hear the battle from a ways away, and there were plenty of demons that tried to reach it. Good red orbs source they were." He said with an unhinged chuckle, before his expression stilled, shifting into a venomous look as his gaze drifted to Sol.

"Cassandra was a good friend of mine, we studied together and dealt with the same deals. She was the heat and I was cold… And YoU KiLLeD HEr." He stated, his voice warping. "I could hear her scream aS yOu cuT HEr iN HaLf!" He finished.

"Now…" His voice seemed to level out… "Now, I'm going to kill the two of you. I'll make this slow." He said, his coming out like a serpent's hiss as he raised his long dagger.

Alex stopped him. Not by doing anything strange or attacking, but simply by… laughing. Once his fit of mirth had passed, he turned fully towards the businessman, tears still in the corner of his eyes. "Oh, please! You are all angry because we killed a woman that sold us to the nazi and tried to kill us before even trying to talk! She reaped what she sowed, and you're going to end the same way."

Something… something seemed to snap in the businessman. The look in his eyes changed ever so briefly as his eyes flashed a deep crimson. Then in a sudden motion, his neck seemed to jerk itself to the right as he lunged towards the two.

Alex didn't even take out his weapon: he just created a Time Bubble right in front of him and the Businessman plowed into it without a moment of hesitation, stopping right in the middle.

"That was… easier than I thought it would be." The hybrid looked at the enraged face of the businessman, before turning towards Sol. "What now?"

"Kill him, and warn Richie, that fifty-some-odd people who've been juicing up on demon power aren't too far from them." Sol responded with a weary look before turning to Alex.

"I mean, I…" Before Alex could say anything, the businessman had managed to escape from his confinement, in his place, was a replica made of ice. As the businessman stumbled to a standing position, his eyes started to shimmer the color of blood, and he looked far calmer than before.

"I see. I see. I see. You gave in to the demon inside, didn't you? It's whispers?" His face morphed into a crazy grin. "That's why you killed her. That's why you killed the group that was in the tower. It was you two that killed the other kids that came here with us, and my poor subordinate that went to the Mall and never came back." The more he spoke, the more he grinned. Alex and Sol blinked at each other, in confusion.

"I'm sorry, what?" Alex was straight-up bewildered. The businessman was now smiling so wide that it showed all of his teeth, slightly open.

"So, I can do that, too, right? I just need to sacrifice power to the demon to evolve like you two?" He licked his lips, eyes vacant, the shimmer of red coming and going. "I can do that. But where do I find the power? Where do I find the orbs to…"

His eyes, crazed as they were, landed on his own group in the small plaza. His grin turned even more crazed and an unhinged laugh escaped his mouth. "Yes. Yes, that will do nicely."

Then, he turned back towards the duo. "Thank you, my fellow kidnap-pees. I can now see that my actions were… hasty. Truly, I am sorry." Then, before either Alex or Sol could do something, he vanished in a flurry of snowflakes.

"I'm not the only one that was creeped out by that, right?" Alex said, wide-eyed and looking around, a sense of wariness settling in his bones.

"No, I'm creeped the fuck out too… wait, he mentioned demon inside. Oh fuck, remember what Rodin said about those parasitic shards? That's possession with an added Faustian pact right there!" Sol all but shouted.

"Look, I know, but we don't know what he really wants to do. He's a creepy fucker, but that doesn't mean that we should go and kill him. He's still human, and he's not actively attempting to attack us anymore." Alex answered, waving one of his hands in the air, frustration clear on his face.

"We cannot be judge, jury and executioners. That's a slippery slope that NEVER ends well." Alex continued.

"I get that, trust me I get that, but our hands are already stained with blood, he just tried to stab us, his head just did a head snap thing which was creepy in its own right, and his eyes turned red briefly. That's a problem." Sol responded.

"I'm not contesting that. I'm saying that it's not enough." Alex shook his head. "Look, I understand that I'm coming out as a sort of hypocrite, considering the whole mess with the nazis, but he's... I don't know. It feels like we are already slipping because we know the underpinning of this reality."

Sol raised his arms in a placating manner, "Ok, ok we'll… we'll take this as it goes and maybe we won't have to do too much. Maybe we could talk him down." Sol said.

"Thank you. I know how it sounds." Alex stopped and took a deep breath for a moment, before releasing it with a sigh.

It was in the moment after that they heard it. The silence. Before, there was a small background sound of chatter, breathing, moving, and people living. The plaza where the remainder of their starting groups had congregated wasn't that far from them. There were more than forty people together in a city that was otherwise empty. They were aware of the group while dealing with the businessman and could hear them in the background. Now… Now, only silence remained. Heavy. Cold. Like a wet quilt tossed over them.

Sol looked at Alex, uncertainty clear on his face before readying his weapons and quietly walking toward the area where the chatter had been. He didn't go too far before stopping dead in his tracks.

"Wha… what the fuck?" He asked aloud, horror clear in his voice.

The area where the remaining group members had been was now a frozen hell with bodies partially frozen, some being shattered completely, and a few were whole, throats slits and cooling on the icy floor. Among them was the businessman only... he had changed. The remains of his jacket and shirt were gone, torn away by two large tendrils that grew from his shoulders and dragged on the ground, each capped by a worm-like mouth. His skin had taken a mottled, frostbitten appearance. Whatever he was before, was gone, utterly consumed by the power he so coveted.

Alex was speechless, his gut twisting in guilt: if he had listened to Sol, probably they could have killed the businessman before he caused this massacre. But, no. He was right when he said that they couldn't become judge, jury, and executioner. It was just that, this time, the man they had decided to spare was a monster in human skin.

"What did you do?" In the end, Alex's voice was as cold as the air around them.

"EmBraCEd tHe SaME DEMONS YOU HAVE. THIS POWER, WE SHOULD HAVE DONE THIS FROM THE START!"

"You are an idiot, that's what you are." Alex's words were harsh and sharp, his scowl something worthy of ballads. Calcabrina was suddenly in his hands.

"And me and Sol are going to free you from this mortal coil."

TERENCE GOODE: COLD HEARTED PRODOTES​

Sol raised Nymphaeum and fired. What he expected was a blast of buckshot striking Terence dead on, not twin scatterings of demonic energy that forced the warped businessman back.

"Damn… I really have to thank Rodin for this one." Sol said in shock.

"Best demonic smith since Machiavelli." Alex agreed, grimly, before he Blinked forward, his blade already falling on one of Goode's arms. The tentacle coming from the back stopped it, frost and ice starting to creep up the blade.

Without waiting another moment, Alex was already back, near Sol's side, shaking Calcabrina.

"Ice aura. Not a good sign." Judging by his face, Alex was thinking that this was going to be a problem. A big one.

"Then we stick with range!" Sol shouted as moved along Goode's side and fired another blast. The demonic energy scattered along his back eliciting a roar of pain from the businessman. He turned swiftly towards Sol and the two tendril began to emit beams of cold that streaked Sol's way. Barely dodging them, Sol continued to fire until he eventually slid on some ice. Letting the momentum take, he wound up getting behind the frozen remains of several individuals.

Alex, in the meantime, decided to use another approach. Exchanging Calcabrina for Seraphim, he started releasing a wave of sound that cracked the ice underneath the man-turned-demon, before he had to move, a series of sharp icicles being sent like needles from the two tentacles where he was just moments more.

"Why are you running? I only want to give you a business proposal, like I did with the others." The smile on Goode's face was incredibly genial and charming. If his face wasn't a mess of blackened flesh and crystalline scales that looked like they belonged on a lizard.

"Oh, sure!" Shouted Sol from behind his cover. "A lifetime guarantee for cool air all year round. I'd say pull the other leg, but it seems you did that with everyone else!" Sol roared before moving again and firing. This time though, he aimed for the tendrils on Goode's balance. The demonic energy missed mostly, but a few pellets struck one of the tendrils sending it back before it shook itself out of a demonic bullet-induced daze.

The demon slithered forward, leaving behind him a curtain of snowflakes that danced in the air before the entire thing turned into a series of floating spheres of ice that shot freezing rays.

Alex had to take time out of his attack to hit them with his sonic waves, to remove them from play.

"That and much more. You see, in my company, we all are a great, big family! WE take care of each other! We cover each other's weaknesses to rise upwards in the world!" Goode declared.

Sol peeked out from his next set of covers when he heard those words. "The hell kinda corporate doublespeak is that?" He asked himself before realizing something. His shots wouldn't hit reliably at this range and he could easily hit Alex if he wasn't careful. He could... His hand rested on the frozen remains of his cover and let out a long suffering sigh. "Whoever you were, I'm sorry. I hope that wherever you are, you can find it in yourself to forgive me." Sol thought before pulling his left arm back.

"Abyssal Punch!" Sol's voice rang out before the jagged and broken remains of one of Goode's subordinates struck him dead on the back.

"Well if you were all one great big family, then maybe you should have treated them as such!" Sol hissed.

Alex Blinked forward, using the distraction that Sol had caused to reach Goode and unleash a wide-area sonic attack, sending the demon hissing back, with his hands on his ears. That was a direct hit.

His tentacles, however, didn't react that way. No, they elongated and burrowed in the ice underneath him, before exploding out where Alex was a moment before, having managed to escape the ambush with a quick sidestep, although the demon had scored a long cut on one of his arms.

Sol reared his back and lashed out with Gevaudan. The weapon, in bone whip form wrapped around one of Goode's back tendrils and Sol began to pull back.

"Time to really try this out," Sol gritted out before channeling Geuvadan's power and invoking Binding Life. There was a pulse of demonic energy as the tendril began to spasm and wither slightly.

Goode whipped around, sending Sol flying through the air and through another frozen person, releasing Gevaudan's hold on the tendril.

"You! You would never be accepted in the company. No one with any brains would accept you into their team!" Goode howled at Sol's slowly rising form.

"You say that like it's a shame." Alex's words came right from Goode's right ear, the blade of Calcabrina sprouting from the demon's chest, the hybrid having blinked forward and buried it from behind, using the moment of distraction that Sol had caused.

Goode's blood dribbled down his chin, but he didn't die. A hit like that wasn't enough to kill a demon, sadly.

The tentacle that wasn't ensnared by Gevaudan rose and smashed against Alex's flank, sending him and his blade flying back. He managed to get up with a roll, the slick ice taking a precious second to regain his balance.

Before Goode could make another move, he felt himself be pulled backward. Geuvadan's grip was still there and Sol was only making it worse. Sol pulled back on his weapon before dropping his knee on the whip to hold it down before firing on Goode with his gun.

"You know that might have hurt, but that's the beauty of a well-made weapon made with a clear mind," Sol said in a slurred manner, visibly disorientated from being thrown through the frozen form of someone.

"I see that you keep trying to apply to my own company. I'm sorry to say that you are permanently rejected and banned from interacting with me ever again." Goode's words were soon followed by twin rays of frost that targeted Sol fully, coming from his hands, while the tentacles turned towards Alex and shot a volley of needle-thin and razor-sharp ice shards at a speed that resembled a bullet.

Alex managed to open Calcabrina just in time for the storm of shards to slam against the barrier on the canopy.

Sol released Gevaudan and tried his best to flee, before slipping and sliding away. Recovering, Sol shook his head before reaching to adjust his helmet and quickly pulling his hand away. One of the horns had been covered in frost.

"That's some potent stuff… Okay, get your head in the game." Sol said to himself before firing on Goode and yelling "You can take your protection order and shove it!"

His shots hit empty air: Goode wasn't there anymore.

The entire arena was completely empty, only the frigid air kept whistling around the two companions, bringing the temperature further down.

"Where did he go?" Alex was looking around - and even upwards - trying to find the demon.

Sol looked around the area before he saw... something. It looked like a shadow cast against the ice. He motioned at it to Alex, before he saw something else. There was something attached to the shadow. It was Goode, he was inside the ice! But how!?

"He's in the Ice!" Sol shouted.

Alex blinked, unable to understand what he was saying for a moment, before he looked down, seeing the shadow move underneath - or was it inside - the layer of ice on the ground.

"Oh no, you don't!" Calcabrina exchanged for Seraphim, a wave of sound exploded from his staff, all around the Hybrid, the ice cracking and shattering from the vibration of the sound.

The shadow roiled briefly before Goode launched himself from the ice with a scream. His body was covered in a series of deep gashes courtesy of Seraphim's blast.

"Dammit, dammit, dammit! This shouldn't be happening!" Goode yelled.

"And who's saying that? You?" Alex asked, eyes blazing, before another wave of sound shot from the staff in his hands and towards the demon, the ice in its path cracking apart in diamond dust.

"Grah!" Goode shouted in pain as he grabbed his ears in the resulting sonic before he jerked backward. Gevaudan had wrapped itself around one of his tendrils.

"I told you! You weren't to interact with MEEE!!!!" Goode began to speak before screaming in pain. Sol had drawn Nymphaeum again and fired it as much as he could at the tendril. The resulting damage had left the tendril dangling by only a few shreds of muscle and skin rendering it useless.

"And I told you to shove it. But I guess based on the fact that you victim projected yours and Cassandra's bullshit onto us before killing your own people, you're not going to listen!" Sol shot back.

Alex stopped to avoid the two tentacles that had lengthened and tried to spear him in his midsection, Blinking to the side and shooting another wave of sound.

He seemed to be saying something, but the sonic attack was too loud and no one could hear what he was saying.

Meanwhile, Sol wrenched Geuvadan back, severing the tendril. He couldn't do the same with the other as the remaining tendril began to fire a stream of ice at him, forcing Sol to slide away.

"If the circumstances were different, I'd actually be having fun." Sol thought as he let the momentum take him while he fired some more.

Goode vanished into the ice where he had been standing. The moment he did so, a series of ice spikes shot upwards, each one as big as Terence's arm.

"He's trying to run!" Alex's shout was clearly aimed at Sol. "He's in one of the shards!"

"Of course he is!" Sol shouted angrily before firing on as many shards as he could.

"Ok so Elder Geryon pulled a jojo with a time stop and now this asshole too? Where's a psychic Frenchman with cigarette hair when you need him? He can't exist in all the shards at once, he has to come out… That's it!" Sol thought as he continued to blast away.

"Alex! Time bubble around the shards!" Sol shouted.

Alex Blinked to the side, flashing in starts and stops. The silver bubbles of stopped time appeared one after the other until they had covered an entire circle around the shards. Due to the speed at which they were traveling, some escaped, but not all. Around half got suspended, while a third of those that had managed to pass shattered as soon as they hit the ground.

"Okay, unless he moved between the shards and the floor, he can move between the shards, right? So you gotta figure that he's moving faster than we can visibly track him. Hence the Time Bubble." Sol said, attempting to explain his idea.

"That's… an assumption that we have no way to confirm." Alex pointed out, breathing deeply. "We have NO idea how his powers work. For all we know it's like Mirror Master from the Flash."

Before he could say anything else, a ray of frost hit him from the back, sending him stumbling forward and freezing him to the floor. Goode had emerged from one of the shards that had passed the encirclement and had attacked while the duo was distracted.

"Sorry, I need to freeze my assets before the situation gets the better of me. But don't worry, I'll invest heavily into it, and make it have a return. Not like you, who's wasting the occasion." Goode's smile was unhinged, showing all his teeth, before the remaining tentacles - the other one had sealed over, but wasn't done regenerating - rose from behind him, a giant icicle hovering above it.

"You motherfucker!" Sol roared as he charged. Sound seemed to die around him as he charged demonic energy into his arm. He was going to smash that shit-eating grin right off this fuckers face! He… he… he felt something snap. There was a flood of power, and… and a voice… Someone was talking, no singing?

"T e Man o t Sh w r s e h w l. Tell m u dreams a d fanatical n s."

Without realizing it, Sol's fist had connected with Goode. The demonically charged punch shattered Goode's jaw, and before he could say or do anything, Sol grabbed him by the neck and just kept punching, completely oblivious to the armored specter that not only mimicked his moves but added to each punch.

"Talk about wasting occasions! How can you freeze your assets when I waste your FACE!" Sol roared as each punch pulped Goode's face further and further until he punched through the demonically mutated man's head, shattering the ice beneath it in the process.

The feeling of ice shattering under his blows dragged Sol from his moment of rage, and he staggered back, looking at the body like he was in a dream.

"Alex… fuck he's still trapped under the ice," Sol mumbled before trying to approach Alex's downed form. He only made it a few steps before he felt his arm spasm wildly followed by an intense wave of sickness. He lurched forward and coughed into his hand, revealing a large mass of blood, and a spectral hand following his movements.

"Dammit all…" He trailed off before collapsing onto the ice.

While Sol was falling towards the frozen-over form of his companion, something happened: a silvery light shone from under the ice, only for two wings made of shiny metal feathers to punch through the ice and shatter it apart, before Alex rose, floating above the ground, seemingly without a scratch.

He was clearly in Devil Trigger, only unlike the streamlined version that appeared when he was wielding Calcabrina, the one that manifested when he had Seraphim in his hands was more ornate: a long, toga-like armor, two wings behind his back, face covered in what looked like a bridal veil.

"Sol!" His voice reverberated through the air, the ice around him shattering in dust, before the transformation ended and he crashed on his knees in front of him. "Are you ok? Can you breathe?"

"Is… he dead?" Sol's voice croaked while his arm began to spasm wildly.

Alex's head turned towards the corpse of the businessman-turned-demon, who was currently missing a head.

"Yes." He declared with absolute certainty. "He's surely dead. Want to use the body to create a weapon?" Alex offered, clearly saying the first thing that came into his mind. Then he winced, embarrassed by that.

"I already have Nymphaeum, he's alllll yours." Sol began to say while trying to sit up, only for his arm to spasm and him to fall on his back. "Besides, I'm a stand user now. I have a magical punchy ghost that punches with me and stuff." He finished deliriously.

Alex's face twisted into a disgusted frown. "Ew. Who knows where it's been? No, thank you. I'll use whatever demon brought us here to create a new weapon, don't worry."

He then turned towards the corpse and, Seraphim in hand, blasted it with all he had.

"Ahhhh… I feel tired man… really tired. Is this what it felt like when you used that armor before?" Sol asked while gazing up at the sky.

Alex stopped his onslaught of sound, breathing deeply, before turning towards Sol with a puzzled expression. "The armored form? You mean the Devil Trigger?"

"...Wait what?" Sol said, his voice sounding more clear as tried to sit up, somewhat.

"You mean that, and the stand… Oh, oh…" He trailed before grabbing his left arm to try to stifle its movements. "I don't feel so great at the moment but please correct me if I'm wrong. You're in devil trigger mode now?" Sol asked.

"I was. Can you actually see or are your eyes closed? I stopped that when I saw that you had already killed him. It costs a lot of energy to stay in that mode, using it willy-nilly is not a good idea." Alex grimaced.

Then, he pressed his hands on Sol's forehead. "You don't feel warm. Look at me. Pupils seem normal…"

"Yeah I can see, it's just I never thought that was an option. It's my arm. It spasms a lot more than I'd like and… I just feel awful right now, just a really sick feeling." Sol said as the arm jerked in his grip as if to express this sentiment.

"Mhh… Let me try something." Alex gently moved his hand to Sol's demonic one and gripped it gently.

"This may sting a little bit. Tell me when you're ready." His voice was trying to be as soothing as possible.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Sol said wincing in preparation.

Alex took a deep, deep breath, and called upon his own power until there was a visible aura around him, silver streaked with gold, red, purple, and black. His eyes were blazing.

"Ready? Three… Two… One…" And nothing happened, exactly as Sol tensed in anticipation. After a few more seconds, he blinked his eyes open, to look at Alex and see if something had stopped him. THAT was the moment when a river of demonic power poured into his arm and Sol SCREAMED.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This chapter was honestly, a lot easier to edit and check for any last-minute mistakes. So, beyond that, a new weapon has been introduced, we've seen a few more of the things going on behind the scenes, Sol's physical issues with his new arm have been more greatly expressed, and a partial... goodbye to one Mr. Goode. More on that in the next chapter.

Enjoy Everyone.

 

[Atma]

"GRAHHHH!" Sol tore his arm away from Alex. His arm seemed to stop its spasms in the meantime. "Wha… What the hell just happened?" He asked with shock.

"I gave you some of my energy. But foreign energy is painful, as you have experienced." Alex answered, shaking his hand like it was stinging. "Sorry for hurting you. But you felt way too low for my taste."

Alex winced apologetically, before shrugging, not knowing what else to say.

"How does that ev… No! I was hacking up blood earlier, so I'll treat it like blood. It'll make more sense if I think of it that way." Sol said while massaging his hand.

"I really should be pacing myself then… was it the emotion or the power I drained off Goode?" Sol asked more to himself than Alex.

"I honestly have no idea. My own Devil Trigger works a bit differently than yours, I'd wager. With me being a full hybrid and you only having one arm… And an incomplete one, at that." Alex shrugged, before looking down the street, where the ice was starting to vanish into mist as the demon's corpse was slowly evaporating, leaving behind a massive amount of Red Orbs.

"How many people had he killed to get that much…" His voice was barely more than a whisper, but it was audible to Sol, as close as he was.

"Too many, far too many," Sol said gravely.

"I know our hands aren't clean of this… but at least. Hell, there's no way I could say anything that makes this situation better. Let's, let's just take the orbs and go." Sol continued, bitterness heavy in his voice.

"Yeah, you're right. I don't... I don't know what to think, honestly. It's just… Why would he do something like that…?"

"You heard him before he turned right? He thought we were bad and had given into some sort of… inner demon…" Sol said trailing, horror. "Son of a bitch! It was right there in front of us the entire time!" Sol shouted out.

"What do you… me- Oh, come on!" Alex shouted a moment later, suddenly angry. "The demon that brought us here! He gave the Red Orbs he gained from killing the other members of his group to him to turn into a demon!" With a frustration-filled cry, Alex kicked the nearest rock, sending it flying against the wall and shattering it into pieces.

"Not only that!" Sol began in agreement. "But remember what Kurt and the other high schoolers said back at the mall. The people who were with them went crazy after buying enhancements. And, if we add to that, what Rodin said about those parasitic shards, then it very could be that Goode taking all those red orbs boosted it to untold heights."

"Fantastic. So, it's either him turning into a demon by selling his literal soul to the parasite inside him or him being consumed by the demonic parasite inside him." Alex didn't shout, but his voice was definitely on edge.

He started pacing to and fro in front of Sol, like a tiger in a too-small cage. "We can't know for sure. And it doesn't even matter! What's next, more demons?!" As the hand of Murphy manifested itself, several Marionettes pulled themselves into view.

Sol looked between them and Alex. "You just had to tempt Murphy didn't you?"

"Shut. Up." Alex already had Calcabrina in his hands, a shining point of energy on the tip.

*******************************

He felt himself fading. It started just behind his eyes and had been happening ever since he confronted those two murderers. Then… then that power hit him. So what if he killed his lackeys? They'd never amount to anything, they lacked ambition, talent, and luck. They were worthless, beyond being good, little workers.

The power felt so amazing, he could feel himself become stronger and stronger… and… and... then... then something... smothered him. Buried him in waves of might. His mouth moved without his command, and his arms and legs powered through despite his attempts to exert control. This… this wasn't him, this wasn't what he wanted. He wanted power and control, dammit!

They had come and seen and his body moved. He tried to direct it and end the battle quickly. Kill them for Cassandra's sake, but it just wasn't working. He… he managed to take some control back and freeze the murderer with longer hair, but the other one charged him, and then… He could see his body reflected from the ice. He tried to move it, to fight back but h..e…j..st….c….d………………..

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

At the top of the Qliphoth, Lusachia paused in its machinations. It felt a great source of its power being snuffed out, and a fair degree of power returned to it. But something was strange about the event, It couldn't have been just another demon. Even untrained, its personal enhancements would put weak humans leagues above most rank-and-file demons. It thought back to the anomalies it had experienced earlier. There must be a connection it realized. Yes, something had caused that. Lusachia could feel anger welling up within itself.

"Interlopers and scavengers, my faithful shall make them into excellent sacrifices."

Lusachia smiled to itself, and deep below a figure resting in a large ornate chair mirrored that same smile.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
*******************************

The Marionette's remains were slowly vanishing, and Alex sheathed Calcabrina once more and made it disappear inside his inventory.

"And that's that. At least it was good to remove some stress, that's for sure." Alex let himself rest, sitting down on a nearby rock, before asking.

"What do we do now? I have no idea where we are or where we need to go to find the demon that brought us here."

"Well, I say we hit the sewers and see where that leads. Up is down and down is up right?" So it's either that, a subway, or that watery whirlpool we saw back at the mall. However, I'd rather not see how long I could hold my breath." Sol while resetting Gevaudan.

"Ah, yeah, let's try to avoid adding drowning to our possible death…" Alex's laugh was more of a sarcastic chuckle, but he still steeled himself and rose to his feet. "Ok, so. Sewers. It's a shame that we don't have that map anymore, but I think we can just find a manhole and move down there."

Almost as if he expected to notice one, he looked down. But, contrary to the demons, no manhole appeared.

"Figures. I'm checking that side, you check that one?"

"Sure," Sol said while lifting a manhole cover on his side of the street. He climbed down a few rungs of the ladder and looked around. It was much more expansive than he thought it would be.

"Well, I guess we're dealing with either really well-thought-out sewers or video game sewers."

Alex followed Sol down the hole, grumbling while putting the cover back. "Of course, he finds what we are searching for instantly, while I only get demons…"

The tunnels inside the sewers were, in fact, extremely spacious. Which was strange, but not unwelcome. There was no light, but that was solved by Alex writing something in the air and summoning what looked like a ball made of light.

"So, I have magic. It's not gonna be a lot useful in combat, it's more of a… ritual kind of thing, but it works. Now!" He turned fully towards Sol. "Which way?"

"Down I guess, or really in any direction that has directions to an office for a map or diagram of the place," Sol said while looking in either direction.

"I mean.. we're in a sewer. I can't see any kind of direction on the walls, to be honest, and the floor looks level." Alex made a complete turn on himself, before returning towards Sol and shrugging. "Choose a direction and we start walking?"

Sol began to move his index finger left and right several times, mumbling "eeny meeny miny moe," before eventually settling on left.

"Left it is," Sol said with a shrug.

Alex followed his friend down the tunnel, the sphere of light bobbing above their heads, throwing in stark relief the fact that the place was empty. No water, no sludge, no smell, nothing. Just stone, some cracks and pebbles, and various side tunnels.

"Yep, still as creepy as the first time we came down here," Alex commented while looking around.

"Well then let's make sure we leave this place as quickly as possible," Sol said as they continued forward. The tunnel was beginning to go down a decline so that was good for its given value. However, in the soft glow of Alex's spell, Sol began to notice something with walls.

"Hey Alex, do you notice anything off with the walls here?" Sol asked.

Alex looked around for a moment, before stopping. He backtracked for a few steps, before walking forward once again, very slowly.

"Yeah. The walls have changed, look."

The uniform slate gray walls of the sewer had given way to carefully laid brickwork. The path kept leading down until there was a large gate that had a somewhat small degree of standing water in front of it. Beyond that gate was what appeared to be a large garden, a gentle misty light illuminating the trees.

"Alex… my brain is hurting trying to figure this out," Sol said while taking off his helmet and massaging his temples.

"I'm not even trying to figure this out. The logistics of the whole thing makes no sense." Because, although it looked like a simple change of brickwork, the main problem was that the two of them had kept going downwards until they had reached that garden. And yet, clear as the day, they could see the city beyond the garden. Specifically, down the cliff. By going down, they had ended up.

Sol looked around quickly before spotting a door hidden in the gloom. Opening it, he saw that there was a large lever in a panel just opposite the door. He pulled the lever and heard the noise of a gate opening.

"Well, this is not where a sewer is supposed to end." Alex's voice was rather puzzled. "Why is there a garden here? Shouldn't there be a landfill or a trash yard or... something else?"

He gestured towards the lush garden in front of them.

"I'm guessing, as we go further up, 'Should' will be a word we'll probably be using more often," Sol said as he looked around.

The garden was more than likely beautiful in the past. The presumably neat and orderly rows of plant life had been overgrown and the metalwork that was visible throughout the garden was rusted by exposure. Alex shrugged, before taking the first step into the garden, then paused, as nothing happened.

"Well, it seems that there aren't any traps, at least." Alex blinked, before looking around: overgrown plants curling around each other in a stunning display of green. Metal that should be rusted, but it was clearly made like that, with red spots that were just different coloration in the metal.

Here and there, flowers in various states of bloom, white, yellow, blue, red and orange, like miniature fireworks.

Sol began carefully nudging a few of the flowers. He wasn't knowledgeable of flowers, or really gardens in general, but just by looking at how they were arranged, he could tell that they were set up with no small degree of love and care.

"I guess, still whoever owned this place previously must ha…" Sol was cut off as a shriek of terror and pain ripped through the air. Sol quickly looked back at Alex.

"That… Do you think another group got here before us?" Sol asked as quietly as possible.

"Who?" Alex asked, face set into a grim expression. "The kids at the Mall? Doesn't sound probable. The Punks are entrenched and the rest of our group is kaput. So, it's either the Red Eyes, but I don't think that someone would scream like a kid in a horror film, or it's the next group. The sixth one, I think. Probably the last, if my theory is correct."

Then, he grimaced. "I mean, this is all speculation. But I can't think of anything else. You?"

"It's the only explanation that makes sense." Sol looked at the house doors that opened to the garden. "Looks like the only way to go is forward. You ready?" Sol asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Alex nodded before the duo made their way out of the garden and towards the sound. Considering how overgrown the whole thing was, they were able to only see a part of the house from where they were.

When they eventually got to the door, Sol gave the door a surprised look. "This house definitely belongs to someone who sold their soul." The door was extremely ornate and well-carved with meticulous detailing and design work. Upon opening the door, the sunroom inside matched the door's opulence in design and detail. In better times, sunlight would have naturally poured into this room but the overgrown plant life had stopped that. Still, there was something odd about the room and by extension the whole location. Sol couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something was definitely off here.

"Or at least several organs. Possibly not their own." Alex commented with a small grin before he moved to the door towards the inside of the place. "Ready?"

He raised a hand, with three fingers extended. "On three. One, Two… Three!" And he opened the door.

The air was still when the two entered, and a fine coating of dust could be seen on the furniture.

"Someone has not been in for a long time," Sol said before looking to see if he could find any other clues in the room. The only thing he could see were some smashed picture frames. However, the associated pictures were removed.

"Then, who screamed?" Alex asked, looking around: even under a heavy coat of dust, the place was clearly upscale: wood paneling on the walls, marble floors, tasteful furniture, gold and silver on the chandelier…

"And, more importantly, where are they?"

"Further in, I guess," Sol said uneasily. "Okay, so I don't like to make bets but… it's either a haunted mansion with Sin Scissors, or one big demon and the screams are bait for us."

Alex sighed and Calcabrina appeared in his hands. "I really want a third weapon, you know? I thought of using Goode, but it felt… wrong." He said, while stalking towards the door to the rest of the house.

"If we find another Red Eyes, however, I'm going to carve them up like a Thanksgiving turkey."

"No issues with that one man," Sol said before opening the adjacent door and stepping through. It led into what Sol had guessed was an equally lavish hallway of dark woods and tasteful ornamentation. Drawing Nymphaeum, Sol began to walk down one end before stopping. On his left was a medium-sized painting. It… looked like a painting of a castle, but warped and twisted as its predominantly red and blue colors gave the painting a hellish vibe. For some reason, Sol swore he recognized the castle in some way.

"Alex, I've got a weird painting here and something about it is bugging me," Sol called out.

"What? Oh. Well, I can see how it would bug you out. Me, it kinda creeps me out, but it's just.. Well, I mean, this place was made by a demon. I expected some kind of horrendous painting, sooner or after." He kinda shrugged after that, before looking down the hallway.

"My main problem was this hallway, to be honest. It feels too long to me."

"Almost like it's being stretched too far?" Sol asked calmly

"More like…" He trawled off, before he took a few steps forward, looking at the wall. He was counting under his breath.

"Nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen… Ah. Yeah, I got it." Alex turned towards Sol and called him towards himself. "Come here. Count your steps until you reach me. Or, more accurately…"

And he pointed at the wall. "Until you reach the painting here."

"Huh?" Sol said before counting off.

"Ten, eleven, twelve… What the hell?" Sol asked aloud

The painting on the wall had changed. It was the same size but depicted a different scene. Sol looked at Alex, and then back at the painting before walking an additional thirteen steps.

"It changed again, this is going to be weird, isn't it?" Sol asked from his new position.

"Considering the wall from this painting…" He pointed at the one near them. "Change from wood paneling to square-cut gray stones, along with the floor moving from parquet to more stone, I'm going with yes." Alex sighed.

"I'm not even going to try and guess about what is happening. I have no idea and, to be honest, I just want to stop and eat something." He patted his stomach. "It's been a while, after all." Alex continued.

"Yeah, you're right, back to the sunroom area for a bit then? Any hallway that arbitrarily stretches on and on may not be the best place to eat." Sol said while massaging his temples.

"That's definitely true. Still, I would feel a bit more safe if we could find a room that didn't have that much glass in it. You never know when something is going to smash it and use it as a weapon." Alex grumbled a little, looking around the hallway for doors to a room that failed to materialize.

"Bah. Let's just move." He turned to walk back before a scream of fear made both of them freeze on the spot. The sound came from further down the hallway. Near the end of it, in fact.

"Well, I guess we can wait on that, rather not get attacked while eating thank you very much," Sol said before looking down the hallway and sighing. "This is gonna suck isn't it?"

"Definitely." Alex sighed with Sol, before turning towards the end of the hallway and starting sprinting towards it.

"Well might as well," Sol said before running after Alex.

The hallway was, in fact, longer than it should be. In their frenetic run, they passed at least six different paintings, with accompanying changes of walls and floor. A few doors passed by their sides closed and made of either heavy wood or the same panels as the walls and floors. Finally, they reached the end of the corridor, finding a single double door at the end, once they pushed it open, they saw what was clearly a dining room, big enough to host at least a hundred people inside.

And with the exception of Sol and Alex, there were more than a hundred people inside. There was a mix of men and women in their late teens to early twenties. As Sol looked them all over he began to notice something common among all of them. Greek letters.

"Oh… fraternities and sororities… not exactly what I was expecting." Sol while slowly lowering Nymphaeum.

"And that's a Divinity Statue. Wait, how many…" Alex lost himself in counting the people around, ignoring the way several of them had stiffened at their entrance, before approaching them with a hostile swagger to their steps.

"Just who the hell are you two?" A rather square-jawed-looking guy asked them. Sol blinked slowly at what he realized was an on-the-spot intimidation check and gave a sheepish look.

"Two people who aren't going to fire at first sight? We thought someone was in danger and came to help. Guess not…" He said trailing off.

In the meantime, Alex was still counting... "Sixty, sixty-one, sixty-two, sixty-three… Move a bit, thanks… Sixty-four…" He grabbed one of the boys that had moved in front of him and lifted him, moving him to the side without even stopping counting.

"Wh… what's he doing!?" The guy who spoke first asked in shock, finally noticing Alex's counting.

"Proving a theory we developed. If he's right… well, it's best you all try to stay alive for as long as possible. Best to not give the, uh… what would be the term, uh… mastermind behind this nightmare an edge." Sol said simply.

"Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, One Hundred, One Hundred and One…" Alex wasn't listening. He was just… counting.

"Watch," Sol said to the lead, well he was going to say jock before wincing at that memory, before continuing. "Your group will probably have 111 people in it."

"One hundred and Ten, One Hundred and Eleven people. Yep, as I had guessed." Alex nodded, before turning towards Sol.

"Yeah, these are the last batch. When did your group get summoned here? How much time ago, who used the statue, have you been attacked? Anyone heavily injured?" He turned towards the lead jock, asking without worrying about the fact that he was large enough to be two of him side by side.

"He…hey, we asked the questions first?" The jock stammered a little taken aback.

"We understand that and we answered them. But for the sake of you and your fellows here. That information is really damn important." Not just for your physical safety, but your spiritual as well." Sol responded.

"Are you some kind of preacher!?" The Jock asked loudly.

Sol paused for a moment before slowly shaking his head. "Absolutely not, but if you got the whole kill the demon lord speech, then whatever power was forcefully gifted to you is… parasitic."

"Well, what were the questions? Who are we, where we are, what is happening? I'm guessing, nothing more. Anyway, in order…" Alex cleared his throat, before assuming a tone of voice that sounded like he had mentally rehearsed what he was saying.

"You have been summoned by a demon to try and reach the center of the city we are in. Except that the power that the Voice said it has given to you is just something the demon has lent to you, not given, so if you grow it by using the statue, you'll just feed the demon's power. If you don't, however, your growth will be restricted to what you can do. That doesn't mean you can't become as awesome as we are. Also, it is a parasitic power that will consume you from the inside. No, we don't know where we are, my best guess is a pocket dimension. No, we don't know if we can escape, I'm guessing we need to kill the demon that brought us here. Other questions?"

"Uh…" A voice from the crowd began to ask in a sheepish tone. "How do we get the parasite thingy out?"

"Excellent question!" Alex didn't really shout, but he swirled with his index finger raised. "There is a portal around here: a circle, completely red and glowing. If you step inside it will bring you to a bar called The Gates of Hell. The owner, Rodin, is a blacksmith of incredible power and he can remove the parasites from you… for a price."

He shrugged. "Those Red Orbs that you got at the start? You'll need those."

"It's 5,000 to remove it from yourself. For now, until you can reliably get that, buy blue orbs and weapons and avoid anything marked with an (L). Those are the trap options, and we've seen what that can lead to firsthand." Sol said while shivering at the memory of Goode.

"Full on possession and demon-hood. Not a good look for anyone, and not good for anyone back home."

The group of people was white as a sheet and the rest of the group was chatting with each other, clearly worried. Until someone, from the very back, shouted something.

"Why should we believe you?!" A female voice, high pitched and with a rather high-class accent asked, cutting through all the noise.

Sol let out a sigh and looked at Alex before raising his left arm. The crowd recoiled.

"See this!" Sol said in a loud voice. "I lost my arm to a demon known as an Abyss and took its arm as recompense. Now before you all start having wild and crazy thoughts, know that I am having a lot of problems with it. Guess you could label them under dystonia and that's without getting into what the blood flow is doing to my internals." Sol said as he lowered his arm.

"I'm not even going to start explaining why I have tri-colored hair and silver sclerae. Let me just say that it was exceedingly painful and I almost died… three times? Four? I honestly lost count." Alex deadpanned, before pointing at the statue. "Now, if you will, I need to go shopping."

Sol shrugged at the crowd before letting Alex go first. Looking at the crowd he began to say, "If any of you have any other questions, I'm free to answer those questions."

Alex ignored the voice that rose behind him and strode towards the statue, eyes mostly blank. With a touch, the dining room vanished from his sight, to be replaced by the white-gold empty space of the Watcher of Time. Only then, did he let go of the breath that he had been holding. "The sixth group. This… either proves my theory or disproves it completely. But I'm thinking that 6 groups of people of One Hundred and Eleven each makes a lot of sense. Ahhh, not the moment!" With a shake of his head, he focused on the screens in front of him.

And the first thing he noticed was that this time, the option to buy things from the demon that had called them there… wasn't present anymore. It took him only a few moments, but the image of Rodin removing the corrupted power from inside himself and Sol was still vivid in his eyes.

"Finally… Now, how much do I have in store?"

When he checked, his eyes turned wide with surprise.

Red Orbs: 173.650

"When did I… no, it's not the moment to start and think about this. I have a wallet to empty."

The windows of possibilities opened in front of him. Almost literally.

Calcabrina (Combined Form)

• Float (Keeping the umbrella open, it will slow down any fall to a gentle float) - 2.500 Red OrbsBought
  • Levitate (As long as the Umbrella is open, the weight of the user is reduced to almost nothing. Higher jump, can walk on fragile and liquid surfaces) - Require Float,5.000 Red OrbsBought
    • Fly (Glide/flight for a short distance with directional momentum chosen at the start of the movement) - Require Levitate, 10.000 Red OrbsBought
      • Defying Gravity (Unlimited flight, cost Magical Energy) - Require Fly, 300.000 Red Orbs
• Tar Beam (Only combined form, charged.) (Charge the entire surface of the Umbrella and shoot a giant beam.) - Require Beam Spell to be bought, 25.000 Red Orbs
  • Improved Tar Beam (Can charge the beam for longer. Damage is increased) - Require Tar Beam, 50.000 Red Orbs

• Calca (Sheath)

  • Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red Orbs
    • Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs
      • Impervious (Require Waterproof, Require Funeral March for a Marionette) (Extend the shield further, the barrier is strong enough to block any attack once. Cooldown after this use) - 50.000 Red Orbs
  • Puppet Waltz (Require Beam Spell) (Lasers come out of the tassels hanging from the spokes of the umbrella, can be kept active during movement) - 15.000 Red Orbs
    • Funeral March for a Marionette (Require Puppet Waltz) (Calca gets thrown up in the air, lasers come down from the tassels and it starts turning on itself, the lasers hitting all around in a casual pattern) - 35.000 Red Orbs

• Brina (Sword)

  • Running Stitch (The tip of the sword is charged with magical energy and, on hit, releases a thin beam of energy in the enemy) - 8.000 Red OrbsBought
    • Cross Stitch (Require Running Stitch, Require Beam Spell) (The tip of the sword can now leave behind up to two trails of energy that will shoot forward. Charged) - 20.000 Red Orbs
      • Cross Stitch (Require Cross Stitch) (The number of trails of energy that can be used is now unlimited, but need to be continuously chained) - 40.000 Red Orbs
  • Back Stitch (Require Barrier Spell, Require Beam Spell) (Enlarge the size of the sword by overlaying cutting barriers on it. The size can change from slightly bigger than normal to greatsword size. Weight is unchanged) - 25.000 Red Orbs
    • Blanket Stitch (Require Back Stitch) (Can now enlarge the sword to bus size. Weight is unchanged) - 50.000 Red Orbs

• Seraphim

  • Sing! (Basic attack)(An area attack that uses sonic waves to hit everyone around the user. Short range.)
    • Contralto (The Sing! Attack rise in power and pitch, shattering hard materials and flying back the enemies around the user) - 7.500 Red OrbsBought
      • Mezzo Soprano (The Sing! Attack rise in range, now reaching until middle-range from the user, sending the enemies even further away.) - 20.000 Red Orbs
        • Soprano (The Sing! Attack is now at the strongest it can possibly be, rising in both strength and range, turning every material around to dust in an even wider range.) - 75.000 Red Orbs
  • Solo: (A single wave of sound erupt from Seraphim in a narrow cone forward, with greater strength, but lesser area, than Sing!) 10.000 Red OrbsBought
    • Acuto (Solo now gains greater penetrative power and hits enemies behind the first one with piercing sound waves.) 25.000 Red Orbs
  • Choir: (Summon a sphere of light with wings that shoot sonic projectiles at the enemies in range.) 30.000 Red Orbs
    • Choir 2: (Summon three Choirs to help the fight, instead of only one.) 55.000 Red Orbs

Even just the weapon techniques were something that he wanted. He really, really wanted them. So, he took them.

Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red Orbs

• Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs
  • Impervious (Require Waterproof, Require Funeral March for a Marionette) (Extend the shield further, barrier is strong enough to block any attack once. Cooldown after this use) - 50.000 Red Orbs
• Puppet Waltz (Require Beam Spell) (Lasers come out of the tassels hanging from the spokes of the umbrella, can be kept active during movement) - 15.000 Red Orbs
  • Funeral March for a Marionette (Require Puppet Waltz) (Calca gets thrown up in the air, lasers come down from the tassels and it starts turning on itself, the lasers hitting all around in a casual pattern) - 35.000 Red Orbs
• Tar Beam (Only combined form, charged.) (Charge the entire surface of the Umbrella and shoot a giant beam.) - Require Beam Spell to be bought, 25.000 Red Orbs

It was overly focused on his main weapon, which made him a little uncomfortable. So, with a look of indecision on his face, he decided to take a step back and reevaluate. In the end, he decided to change a couple of things.

Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red Orbs

• Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs
• Puppet Waltz (Require Beam Spell) (Lasers come out of the tassels hanging from the spokes of the umbrella, can be kept active during movement) - 15.000 Red Orbs
• Choir: (Summon a sphere of light with wings that shoot sonic projectiles at the enemies in range.) 30.000 Red Orbs
• Tar Beam (Only combined form, charged.) (Charge the entire surface of the Umbrella and shoot a giant beam.) - Require Beam Spell to be bought, 25.000 Red Orbs

Then, after choosing what techniques he wanted, he moved to the non-weapon skills. Specifically, his half-demon powers. And he immediately chose one that would be invaluable, going forward.

• Blink (Move from one place to another without any time in between. Limited to five seconds of movements, only places that are physically accessible): 7.500 Red Orbs- Bought
  • Blink 2 (Time of movement is extended to ten seconds): 20.000 Red Orbs
    • Blink 3 (Time of movement is limitless, depending on magical energy consumed): 75.000 Red Orbs
• Time Bubble (Create a bubble of slowed time in front of you that lasts for three seconds): 15.000 Red Orbs - Bought
• Haste (Speed your personal time up, moving faster and doing more things in less time): 35.000 Red Orbs
• Slow (Slow down a target's personal time, making them move like they are in slow motion)(Consume Magical Energy): 50.000 Red Orbs

"Yeah, I'm taking Haste and Slow. It falls precisely in my budget."

The final tally ran him exactly 175.000 Red Orbs. Precisely inside his own range.

"Back to being a pauper. Oh well, I can always kill more demons." And, with a smile, he bowed to the Watcher of Time and let the white-gold space vanish.

In the meantime, Sol was being asked a lot of things. Some were smart.

"What exactly do you mean by demons?!"

And some were…

"What do you mean there's no open shop where we can buy booze?!"

…less smart.

Sol paused, pinched the bridge of nose, and pointed to the person who asked the smart question.

"Yes, demons, the forces of hell, led by…" Sol paused, before continuing, "Not sure, there's been some inter rivalries that have spilled over topside and dragged us all in. Now there's some demon who's looking to capitalize on a power vacuum left by the proverbial dead beat that ruined all of our respective days. There's a very long story with that one, that probably involves at least twenty years' worth of tax evasion. Hence why you don't take anything with the L prefix, unless it's a denotation of size for healing items. Stay clear from the life restoration option." Sol said, partially reiterating an earlier statement.

"Still there are a lot of demons here, we're basically in a pocket of hell right now. The good news though, there are dedicated businesses that perform demon hunting at a fee, So I'll be sure to give you all referrals when we get out of here. Due note that at least one of the businesses is run by a man who's addicted to pizza and strawberry sundaes. I guess if you are in the business that long you start to pick up eccentricities."

Then he turned and gave a withering stare at the idiot who asked him about the booze.

"I meant what we said, there is a place that sells liquor but that's called Gates of Hell and booze is much less of a concern there than you'd like. It's a wholesale arms dealership with nothing, but demonic weapons on offer. Bonus points if you bring your own scavenged demon parts for trade. If you are really desperate to get drunk, then scavenge around for whatever ruined store or house for your fix. Just don't come crying to me when you bring a horde down on yourself because of your poor life decisions."

"Are you scaring the kids, Sol?" Alex's voice was a little bit rough but steady. He was smiling, a faint silvery aura slowly vanishing from around him, his eyes glowing visibly for a few seconds more.

"But, yeah, whatever he said to you all is true. Or a well-focused theory. Anyway, I'm done with the statue, Sol, you can go on. You all will take turns later, so start thinking about what you want to get."

That drew some puzzled stares from them. Alex rolled his eyes. "What do you want as a power? Do you want to be stronger, do you want to shoot fireballs, create barriers, or heal wounds? Start thinking about it."

Sol took in what Alex said before ruefully shaking his head, "No, just one of them asked a really stupid question and it kinda ticked me off."

"Hey, I thought it was a smart question!" The voice that asked before Sol responded indignantly.

"And now the whole crowd knows your college major if they didn't already." Sol shot back before looking at Alex.

"Got what you needed?" Sol asked easily.

"Yeah. I prepared as well as I could. My suggestion is to not be stingy with your funds, we are entering the endgame. I fear." Alex answered, before casually walking towards one of the doors to the side of the room.

"I'm feeling a bit hungry. Where's the kitchen?" He asked one of the college-age students around, who just blinked and pointed at the other door. "Thanks. Well, I'm going to go and make a snack. You all remain here and if something or someone appears and starts trying to kill you, shout."

"Wait, wait, are you going to leave us here? All alone? While there are demons around that want to hurt us?!"

The person who spoke was a girl, one of the stereotypical ones that could be seen in a horror movie. Alex blinked, almost not believing in his eyes. "Well, yes. I am hungry, after all."

"Can't I come with you?" She asked, trying to come off as sultry, blinking her eyes and pouting. A guy behind her didn't like what she was doing if his expression was any indication of it. Maybe her boyfriends?

"Eeehh…" Alex took a step back, his demeanor turning rather unsure all of sudden. "I mean…"

Sol found himself in the realm of the Statue of Time and Space and began to open the menus.

"I know Alex said to splurge but… I need that Angelo… So let's see what I have and we'll work our way down." Sol said before checking his wallet.

"194,550 Red Orbs… how the… oh…" Sol said, horror creeping into his voice. "Right, let's… let's put these to better use."

He scrolled down through the menus and paused at one of the options. It was expensive but, better to grab it now than later. He selected a skill called Demon's Dance for 60k and watched his wallet drop in value.

"Leaves me with 40k or so left to work with. Let's continue." He said more to himself before buying the skill Sequence Life for another 30K.

"That leaves with just above 100K, okay fuck it, might as well." Sol said before moving down the list and purchasing Restrictive Centrifuge and Restrictive Suffering for a combined value of 45K. He then returned Gevaudan's sword state and purchased Faultline for 40K. Then he paused and looked at abilities. His finger, his demonic finger, hovered over the option briefly. Sol, remembering the pain he was in before, purchased the option Trigger Heart and watched as his wallet dropped to 12,050. He looked back at the Items and purchased Two Vital Star Larges and Two Devil Star Larges, depleting his wallet to 6,050.

"I think that does it for me for now. Really not looking forward to what sort of conversations are awaiting oh the other side." Sol said with a slight grimace.

What awaited him on the other side was a rather high degree of commotion. A young woman and a young man were arguing, loudly, in the middle of everyone, while Alex was near them, in the middle, trying to take a few steps back from them. Sadly, the crowd was so closed off that he couldn't move away unless he forced his way out. Which wasn't something he wanted to do.

Sol grimaced, before drawing Nymphaeum and almost firing. He realized that would be incredibly stupid for a multitude of reasons and decided to move through the crowd on his own… by placing his demonic hand directly in peoples' faces.

As the people recoiled from the visibly demonic limb, Sol simply began to say, "Excuse me, pardon me, trying to get on by, thank you," before quietly grabbing Alex and making his way out of the crowd. The two who started the argument, were oblivious to what just occurred.

"Why the hell shouldn't I talk to him!?" The girl shouted to her male compatriot.

"I wouldn't care, but you were clearly coming onto him!" The male shouted back.

"Well, at least he's obviously down more than you!" She hissed.

"Yeah!? Well, I'll show you what I can do!" He roared before turning to where Alex had been only to stop and gaze at the empty spot. "Hey uh… where'd he go?"

"Good grief." Alex's voice came from above them, where he was floating above the couple. "Are you done with your lover's spat?" His voice, now that he had recovered, was only barely amused, instead of surprised or unsure. Then, he let himself drop down, the umbrella vanishing into his inventory.

"Look, it doesn't matter if she was coming onto me. I'm gay, so it won't work. Either way, I'm hungry, so I'm going to eat. Sol, take care of them for a few minutes, I need to not be here for a bit."

And then, before anyone could say anything else, he Blinked away, vanishing from where he was standing a moment before.

Sol wordlessly looked back between the spot where Alex had been and the crowd, before stating simply, "My brother in all but blood, people. If he ever offers you a flying ride, don't. I am now thoroughly acrophobic as a result. Real speed demon if you catch my drift… Ah hell, I gotta answer questions again don't I?" Sol asked with a weary sigh.

Silence.

For only a moment, though. Then the questions started to come: How they were here, why they were here, could they really get powers, what about the demons, could they survive, would he protect them, do they need to offer something to Sol and Alex for their protection, there's anything that they can do to survive better, what were his suggestions for a power to choose, what did he mean with loaned power…

Sol groaned before muttering to himself. "I really want to punch the shit out of demons right now… Okay! Since all you seem to want are twenty questions, demon edition! Let's begin!"

The deluge of questions didn't stop. If anything, it had turned faster and louder. Sol tried to answer as many as he could, but soon he realized that the people here were not only asking while he answered, but they were also talking over him. He paused, spun on his heel, and walked to the closest wall before he began to slowly and deliberating, smack his head against it.

"I. Really. Want. To. Punch. A. Demon." He said between each hit.

After a few moments, he realized that the flood of questions had stopped, but not the whispers. People were now looking at him like he was mad.

Then, after a minute of hushed whispers, one of the guys took a step forward and asked, his voice trembling slightly. "It's… everything ok?"

"I have dealt with scared teenagers and some kickass punks, both of whom were way more on the level and willing to listen than you lot. So no, everything is not okay. I want to go home, I replaced my arm with a demon's, watched someone I vaguely knew turn into a half-man, half-tentacle monster thing that wouldn't look out of place in the Umbrella Corps' reject pile, and now I'm dealing with you all who can't be bothered to actually listen! So, I'm fucking fantabulous right now." Sol said angrily.

The slightly nervous man looked confused for a moment, before asking another question. "What's Umbrella Corp?"

Sol's mind stopped for several sections before he turned and smashed his head into the wall, denting the wood. A few seconds later, an answering whisper saved Sol from having to respond. Sadly, the one who asked - the same one who asked about the booze - took a step back with an expression of both fear and disgust on his face.

"There are ZOMBIES now?!" His voice was a little shrill from the shout.

Sol removed his head from the wall. He almost responded immediately before he stopped and considered the universe. "No, Yes, Maybe? Probably not, but… wait I mean technically Arius counted but his corpse was possessed by a demon so, no? Look I've had a day and stupid questions are really only serving to piss me off."

"Wait," Another voice asked. "You said Arius, like Arius Vogel the former CEO of Ouroboros Corp. I have an uncle who used to work at a London branch office before the CEO died. You're telling he was possessed by a demon!?"

"Finally a good question! Okay, so it was less a possession and more of a demon wearing his skin like a meat suit after he suffered a deadly case of .45 Auto poisoning and terminal velocity. So, uh from here on out, don't trust mega-corps, 'cause they're probably like Ouroboros or Umbrella." Sol said before leveling a glare at the human booze hound.

"Holy shit..." was the response before the target of Sol's ire spoke up again.

"What? It was a valid question! You can't come here and glare at me for asking if there are zombies when you said that we have to deal with demons!" The guy half-shouted, crossing his arms in a defensive position. He seemed to be vaguely offended by the glare that Sol was giving him.

"No, it was not a valid question, nor was the question about booze. Demons do not always equate with zombies. If they did we'd have already seen them by now!" Sol yelled as began to devolve into a rant, listing every demon he and Alex had encountered to that point, while wildly gesturing with his hands.

While Sol was loudly explaining the differences between a Hell Caina and a Hell Antenora, Alex returned with half a sandwich in his hands, already chewing a mouthful, and stopped at the door.

"I did hear shouting, but why are you holding class?" His question was just loud enough to cut through the chaos, making everyone turn towards him.

"They think zombies exist here because I equated Goode's appearance with something from Umbrella and one of them didn't know what Umbrella is. Booze Meister over here jumped on that train of thought real quick." Sol responded sharply.

"My name is not Booze Meister!" The now-nick-named individual responded angrily.

"Well, it is now!" Sol shot back.

"I mean, I'm not going to discount the appearance of zombies. Not anything from a virus or anything, though. You do remember the flaming corpses, right?" Alex's question was aimed more at their shared knowledge about the game than any specific enemy they had met personally. Still, it was a good point to make.

Yet, before the panic could spread, Alex clapped his hands loudly. "Ok, everyone listen!" His voice echoed around the room with a weight to it that made it clear that everyone needed to listen to him.

"I want you all to divide yourself into two groups. For simplicity, we're going to divide you into male and female, to start! Male on this side, Female on the other one!" He waved his arms in two opposite directions, to keep everything clear. There was some grumbling but unlike with Sol, the group seemed to actually listen to Alex, as they began to move into the separate groups.

"Good! Now, to simplify things even more! Starting from you!" Alex pointed to a random person in the Female group. "Start counting! Starting from one, then the next one will raise their hands and say two and so on and so forth, until there are no more. Be orderly!"

And so they started doing exactly that. The girl that Alex had pointed at raised her hand and shouted "ONE!" Then there was the second, the third, and so on until the last one lowered her own arm and then shouted "FIFTY-FIVE!" Died down.

Alex nodded, then pointed at the Males. "Do the same thing!" They grumbled a little bit, before shutting up and starting when they saw the expression on his face. That group was fifty-six.

"Good, good. Ok, now. Divide yourselves into groups of five people! No more, no less! Get a move on, I'm trying to save your lives here, people! Except one group will have six, for obvious reasons! No, I won't accept arguing!" Alex stated.

Sol looked at Alex perplexed. "What's going man? Feels like I'm missing something." Sol asked.

"I'm dealing with a problem before it gets worse." Alex answered, a serious frown on his face, before he pointed at a group of ten people clustered together.

"I don't care about your reasons! FIVE people! Not more! MOVE!" His voice reverberated around the place for a few seconds after his shout was done and everyone was now moving faster.

"Sol, go eat something. The kitchen is fairly well furnished. And… there's something you need to see." He pointed the tip of his umbrella towards the door from where he had come from. "Beyond the kitchen, the door on the left. There's a parlor with something interesting inside. Go."

"Alright," Sol said quietly, any irritation gone from his voice.

Walking away from the room, Sol passed through the kitchen, pausing briefly before snatching up an apple and continuing forward. He could always return and grab something more substantial on the way back. Entering what Alex had called the parlor, Sol began to look around. The room was vaguely familiar as if he had seen it once before but he couldn't quite place it. The sense of vagueness died when his eyes fell upon a large portrait hanging in the center of the room.

Now, Sol was more of a modern art kind of person, but he figured that classical would be the best term to apply to the painting's style. It depicted four figures against an, admittedly unappealing to Sol, dark background and setting. The first figure to draw his eyes was the woman in the middle. She was... a picture of beauty, with long blonde hair that stood out against the dark reds and blacks of the middle and foreground. Then he looked down and froze. In front of her were two boys, both with white hair that was styled differently and showing body language that somehow perfectly expressed their attitudes. He felt ice form in his chest and he looked to the final figure on the right side of the painting. With his stark white hair that almost affected the downward curvature of a pair of horns, it was clear to see where the boys had inherited their looks.

The apple dropped from Sol's hand. "That's the Sparda family portr... This is, this is, this is.... oh fuck!" Sol said before hastily picking the apple backup and returning back to Alex. Once there, he saw what Alex was doing. With a stern face and a sterner tone of voice, Alex was directing the group to buy their own upgrades at the statue. Starting with a Blue Orb, at a minimum, and then talking with them to decide what they wanted to learn. Alex was not forcing anyone into making certain purchases, just using his own knowledge to make suggestions. And, to speed things up, he was alternating between males and females, so that they could talk with the rest of the groups and make the subsequent decisions go faster.

When he noticed Sol's appearance, he raised a finger to his lips for a moment, making the universal sign of 'Shhhh', before choosing another group to go.

Sol watched the group briefly before getting close to Alex and whispering, "This is 'HIS' house!"

"I. Know." Alex's whisper was barely more than a movement of his lips, but he still managed to say it. "Don't say anything. Take over the counseling part, I'll finish ordering the groups. The faster they are organized, the faster we can move on."

Sol moved to the newest group and began to make suggestions. "Uhhh, right! So, you want to get yourselves a Blue Orb for increased vitality and physical capabilities. It's not going to be on the level of the L prefixed items but it won't drive you insane. Next you want to…" Sol's voice began to trail off as he explained which things to get, which to avoid, and which to save up for.

By working in two, the whole thing sped up, and soon, everyone was lined up in front of the statue, touching it and getting away a few seconds later, quietly amazed by the changes.

***************************************************

After a little less than an hour, everyone in the room had had their turns. Some, those that didn't want to fight, had taken healing powers. Many had taken physical power. Around the same number had chosen ranged magic attacks. It was fairly balanced, all things considered.

Alex was sitting on a chair, head thrown back and staring at the ceiling. "I hope it will be enough." It was just a whisper, but Sol was more than good enough to hear it.

"If we clear the way forward then it should be safe for both them, the punks, and the teens. We probably got pretty lucky with our location. They? not so much." Sol responded in turn before finally finishing the apple he had taken from the kitchen.

"To think we're in their house, in a pristine condition. That's… I never would have imagined that." Sol said quietly, a slight hint of awe present in his voice.

"I kinda didn't want to imagine it. But it happened, and that's it. Now…" Alex sighed, before getting up. "Now we have to prepare."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Oh yeah, the location has changed to one of greater importance and the last group of survivors has been encountered. Now, that doesn't mean that things are any safer. We've seen what happened to the original manor after all. There's also the matter of Lusachia, and that's only going to well... well we'll cross that proverbial bridge when we get there.

Enjoy everyone!

 

[Atma]

Sol carefully and somewhat regretfully set the apple core on a small table before popping his knuckles, his left arm beginning to spasm slightly in the act. Sol grimaced before getting and handing Alex two items: a large vitality star and a devil star.

"I bought two sets earlier, just in case… When they move on or we find another statue with a wide-open area, I will use that disc. I'll take that short moment of blinding agony, then deal with the risk of losing muscle control at a pivotal moment or anything else that comes from this arm." Sol said in a low tone.

"I think there's an inner garden or something... The whole place is mixed with a castle, so it's a definite possibility." Alex murmured back before turning towards the group of college guys. "Give me a moment." And he went and asked.

A few moments later, he turned back, nodding to Sol. "Let's go!"

"Wait, you are going? But we don't know what to do!" "Yeah! We have no idea how to use this power!" "Can't you stay a bit more?!" Those and more voices rose in the air, from both males and females, their expression rapidly approaching a scared one.

"Not too far, but we have some business we need to handle." Sol raised his left arm. "I need to stabilize myself, so it's best you all steer clear of the garden for as long as possible. There'll be a strong demon there that you won't be able to handle at this time."

"Wait, what do you mean stabilize…" Alex closed the door in the face of the guy who was asking, cutting him off.

Then he turned with a beatific smile on his face. "Shall we?" He started walking forward rather fast. "Also, do you want me to help you? Or do you want to deal with him alone? If there are small fries, I can keep them off you."

"I won't say no to the latter. I don't know what will come when we play the track, so again, thank you… And thank you for shutting that door when you did. They're… I really hate to say it, but the questions were getting on my nerves." Sol said before looking at the hallway.

"Lead on."

Alex shrugged, while walking down the hallway. "I mean, they are young and in a place that is pretty isolated from their normal environment. Plus, demons and powers and whatnot. Also, I don't know if you have noticed, but they didn't say anything about the rest of the palace. I'm going to guess that no one had tried to move away or use the statue until we reached the place."

After passing the kitchen and the door to the parlor with the portrait, they reached another door that opened on the inner garden. There was a water fountain in the middle, with stone benches around it. And, while overgrown, the place was lovely.

"Here we are." Alex said.

Sol took in the inner garden and began to nod. "I really wish I had a camera for this… I also wish we didn't have to set up a fight here. You think wherever Eva is, she'll forgive us for this?" Sol asked.

"I really hope so. If you want, I can try to repair the possible damages with magic after. I have a lot of knowledge, but it's not like I have had any kind of chance to actually use it beyond what I did in the nazi prison." Then he shrugged, giving Sol a sardonic look.

"Still, it's a copy. Even if I fail, the original should still be good."

"True," Sol said before looking skyward. "We know it's a copy, but we still ask for forgiveness." He looked at Alex before shrugging. "I'm sure Sparda moved from place to place over two thousand plus years, but I also know damn well that messing with someone's garden is always an open invitation for catastrophe." Sol finished before moving to the center of the inner garden and setting the CD player in a safe-ish location. He inserted the disc and pressed play before quickly backing back.

The song began and sounded… wrong. Like a half-finished song with distorted vocals and instrumentation. A corrupted and broken version of what could have easily been a masterpiece.

"Alright, it's game time," Sol said while drawing his weapons.

"Hope they will get a move on. This song is horrible." Alex winced, covering his ears with his hands while, at the same time, trying to see if demons were appearing from anywhere.

Then, a ray of light descended from the sky, carrying something in it. Several somethings. Five figures materialized from the light. If the Bianco and Alto affected the idea of an Angelic Knight, then these were their antithesis. Sol pointed at the center most one, which he quickly saw was the target.

"I'm going to sound like a bad anime villain when I say this, but your power belongs to me." Sol declared before lunging at the Proto Angelo.

Alex facepalmed before slicing with Calcabrina, the sword leaving a trail of light behind that slammed against the cohorts of the Proto Angelo, four Scudo Angelos that were sent back by the attack. "Take care of him, and I'll keep these ones out your back!" Right after that, a silvery aura enveloped him, and he started moving far faster than normal.

Sol surged forward, lashing out with Gevauden. The Proto Angelo leaned out of the way of the slash before retaliating by bracing its off hand against the side of its blade and charging Sol. Sol was forced to dodge to the right with Time Step before firing a blast at the Proto with his gun. The energy shot caused the demon to stagger slightly before it leaned into its momentum, spun, and swung at Sol.

Dodging, Sol began to backstep while thinking, "Okay, so you're fast and adaptive. Guess that's why Urizen kept you all around. Let's try something heavier." Sol switched to Vendetta and clashed once more with Proto Angelo. The moment both demonic swords struck, the sound of a tremendous thunderclap filled the garden.

While the duo was busy with their one on one duel, Alex and the four Scudo Angelos were busy to the side. The Hybrid was flashing from side to side, Calcabrina always slashing and cutting away at them until one's shield cracked and broke in a shower of shards. Capitalizing on that, Alex switched to Seraphim, and a wave of sound sent the whole group flying backward, landing on the ground in a heap. A moment later, the shield-less one was decapitated.

For a brief moment, Sol and the Proto Angelo were in a blade lock. That moment ended when Sol roared Abyssal Punch while aiming directly at the eyeless face of the demon. It responded by breaking the lock, raising its sword in defense.

*crack*

The force of the strike sent the demon back several feet and through one of the overgrown sections. It began to charge right away, and Sol was about to press the attack when his eyes caught something. Barely visible along the giant blade it wielded, there was a small but noticeable crack.

Sol began to grin and charged. The Proto Angelo swung in response, prompting Sol to leap above the swing and initiated an air hike. Using the extra air time, Sol swung down as hard as he could. The strike was partially blocked as a section of Vendetta had cut into the Proto Angelo's right shoulder.

*crack*

Before Sol could do anything else, the Proto Angelo seemed to take a page from his book and used its free hand to deliver a punch directly to Sol's midsection. Sol flew backward, landing hard against one of the stone benches. His breathing came out sharp and ragged.

"That's gotta be another broken rib or two," Sol said in a pained tone before quickly using Time Step to escape, for in the time it took him to fall and speak, the Proto Angelo was already moving. Holding the flat of its sword in front of it, the demon charged with the intent of crushing Sol against the bench and fountain. As Sol dodged the charge, the Proto Angelo altered its movement to swing down on its foe. However, the wound to its shoulder threw its arm off slightly, causing the blade to miss Sol by a hair's breadth. It tried to swing again only for Sol to recover and attack.

"Abyssal Punch!" Sol shouted as his fist collided with the blade once more.

*Crack*

The Proto Angelo staggered back before retaliating, though thanks to the two previous hits, the cracks along its swords were growing more and more visible.

The three remaining Scudo Angelos tried to reach their commander, only for Alex to blast them once more with Seraphim, sending them back more than once. He was breathing a bit hard, considering that this wasn't the proper use for his weapon. Still, it was more than enough to keep them there and, at the same time, crack their shields bit by bit. It wouldn't last much more than this.

For an instant, the two looked at each other before charging, with Vendetta and the Proto Angelo sword ringing in the clash. Sol attempted a thrust that was parried and was forced to step back, swatting various blows from the Proto Angelo as best he could with the help of Time Step. Seeing an opening, Sol sidestepped and swung his blade directly at the Proto Angelo's neck. The strike was blocked, but the force of it damaged the enemy sword that much further, leaving a noticeable crack in the sword.

*CRACK*

Upon seeing this, the Proto Angelo adjusted its grip and swung, sending Sol across the garden. Quickly rising, Sol charged and swung down with all his might. The Proto Angelo responded with a rising cut and…

*CRACK!!!*

A tremendous sound made itself known as Sol was sent flying backward, Vendetta flying out of his hands and embedding itself into the fountain. However, for the Proto Angelo, its sword shattered in its grip, sending shrapnel into its body. Bleeding heavily, it gave a low roar of rage.

"Time we finish this." Sol hissed before drawing Gevaudan and attacking once more. The Proto Angelo lashed out in fury, its countenance lost along with its blade, and Sol dodged to its side and countered.

What was one slash became two, then three, and then more as Sol unconsciously initiated Thriller, and yet as he finished the attack, Sol began to feel something, a spark of the demonic power now coursing through his veins.

Without realizing it, Sol called out, "Demon's Dance". His slashes became faster and stronger, carving deeply into the Proto Angelo's body. Each strike carried it a little further in the air until Sol paused briefly. There was a glow of demonic energy around Gevaudan as he struck one final time. The head of the Proto Angelo was separated cleanly from its body, its eyeless face a mix of shock and agony.

The two descended back to the ground, and Sol dropped to his knees, breath heavy and left arm hanging limply at his side. Meanwhile, Alex was dealing with the remaining monsters.

"Choir." A sphere of white light, with wings, appeared above the Seraphim, before it started floating around the place, shooting rays of pure sound that kept at least one Scudo Angelo busy at all times. With their inability to attack flying enemies and the constant knockback from the wall of sound that Alex was using, they were essentially blocked.

After a few more moments of battle, their shields shattered and the next few attacks reduced them into paste. Only Red Orbs for Alex to absorb.

"Hey, you did it." With a wave of his hand, the Choir vanished. "How do you feel? No, wait, not the moment. We need to return to the statue before the body disappears." The hybrid changed gear between blinks, striding towards the corpse and lifting it with a single arm.

"Come on, you're going to be happy that it's done. No more arm spasms for you."

"That… was… I… think I just did a limit break." Sol said between shaky breaths. He tried to get and stumbled. His arm felt like it was going numb.

"Damn it, of course it happens now." Sol hissed before staggering to his feet, quickly stumbling to the fountain to retrieve Vendetta. De-summoning the massive blade, he used his good arm to grab a hold of the Proto Angelo's body.

"This will hurt, but it'll be worth it." Sol said as he crushed the devil star in his good hand. The numbness in his arm vanished in an instant.

"Okay, no pain that time, but it's coming," Sol said while getting a better grip on the demon's body.

Alex grabbed the corpse and pushed Sol slightly back. "I didn't get hurt. Perks of being a mostly ranged fighter. Let me carry it, you go forward." With a smile, he moved the corpse into an easier to carry position and started moving back towards the door they had come from.

"Come on. I want to see the face of the kids when we come back with the corpse."

************************

Sol struggled to open the door to the main room only to find himself staring into the eyes of one of the survivors that was by the door. There was an awkward silence before Sol spoke.

"So we've got the slowly disintegrating corpse of a demon here and if you could move, that'd be great…"

"U-, uh, sure." The person said, shuffling awkwardly out of the way.

"If someone can free a corner, please and thank you. Maybe one near the Statue, that would be ideal…" Alex's voice was more than a bit prodding and people were soon obeying him. "Thank you very much. Now, Sol, go and check how much it costs. I'll be here, preparing for when you get the info."

And he gestured towards the Divinity Statue.

Sol gave Alex a thumbs up before entering the statue's domain.

"Okay, let's see how much I've got vs. what you want." Sol said more to himself. Looking at his wallet, he saw that he had 42,050 Red Orbs. He looked at the price for Full Hybridization, 100K.

"W…well that's a problem. Say any way I could pay you to hold the body on ice for the time till I make up the scratch?" Sol asked in a pleading manner.

The statue remained silent.

"Well… Shit." Sol remarked before leaving the void.

Looking at Alex, he gave a sheepish look. "I'm about 57,950 Red Orbs short of what we need. Think we can get another record from Rodin?"

Alex blinked, before whistling, reluctantly impressed. "Damn, same cost for an arm as it cost for an entire body? At least it has their priorities in order!" Right after that, he turned towards the area near the statue and took Calcabrina out. A moment later, he had slashed the back of his arm, blood dripping down it.

"Well, at least I have an excuse to try this." Not that his words were being heard over the sounds of screams that his actions had caused. At least until he started using his own blood to paint on the ground.

Then silence came.

The only thing that could be heard was Alex humming a song, while tracing bloody symbols on the floor..

Sol looked at the symbol before realizing what was going on. "Well I hope that works, that'd make holding them a lot easier."

Although privately he asked himself, "Was Lady Gaga strictly necessary to use in creating the summoning circle, and if so, what would happen if other artists were used."

"Mhmh, yeah…. Ra-ra-ra…" The humming continued for a minute more, before the whole circle was done. Once Alex got up, the whole thing was shining silvery red.

"And that's that. Now, we only need to…" He grabbed the corpse and let it tumble inside the circle without a moment of hesitation. The moment it touched the ground, it froze in time.

"Ok, this should keep it still for a few hours. I poured as much magic as I could to make it work, so it should be good for a minimum of six hours and a max of twelve." Then he turned towards Sol and the rest of the people in the room. "That means that we need to go and hunt demons for their Red Orbs. Who wants to come with us?"

"Well you know I need them, so no question from me." Sol said easily, before turning to the crowd. "If anyone wants to come, stay back and focus on pot shots and wounded demons. This one…" Sol pointed to Proto Angelo. "Was a helluva fight, so watch yourselves."

"Wait, you want us to go out of here?" "To hunt DEMONS?" "And risk being attacked by zombies?" The cacophony of voices that answered Sol was both shrill and panicked. Which made sense, considering the situation.

"For all that is good and right, there are no zombies!" Sol shouted. "Demons yes, but there has never, nor will there ever be zombies in this plane of existence!" Sol finished in an exasperated tone.

"YAAAAAAAHHHH!!!" A shrill, high and panicked shriek came from the door on the opposite side of the kitchen. A moment later, a girl ran inside, face streaked with tears, an expression of pure fear on her.

She was stuttering, barely able to talk. "Th-there-there are…. Z-z-z-ZOMBIES!"

*********************************************************************

Once everyone was in the room near the main dining room, looking through the giant windows, they could see the lawn in the front of the house. And the horde of zombies that was shambling forward towards the main door.

"Mh. Look at that, those ARE zombies." Alex's voice was faintly amused by the situation.

Sol raised hand, demonic energy roiling off of it. "Not another word, I'm going to find whatever demon did this and make them regret it, because I know damn well, you will never let me live this down." Sol said angrily, moving past the girl. He turned to the crowd and spoke.

"Everyone! Hold the doors and barricade everything as tight as you can, be prepared to move upstairs if anything should happen… and please don't try to hide in the cellar. No one needs to be a Mr. Cooper right now." Sol said before turning back on his heel and heading outside.

"Who, me? I'm not that kind of type, really." Alex answered playfully, Calcabrina already in his hands.

"I'm only going to remind you of it for most of your life. Not all of it." He almost skipped behind Sol, smiling widely.

Sol just began to make grumbling noises before leaving the mansion and confronting the horde. It wasn't exceptionally large but as Rodin would say, quantity was a quality all its own. Sol paused briefly and tried to see if he could unfortunately recognize any of the bodies and, to a degree of growing horror, he realized he couldn't.

He drew Nymphaeum and fired at the nearest zombie. It was a male, wearing jeans and a T-shirt with a band name he didn't recognize. Its head was all but vaporized in a blast of demonic energy before its body broke down into red orbs.

"Well, at least head shots are still the gold standard of zombie killing," Sol commented as he drew Gevauden.

"I'm gonna let you do the bulk of the work. You do realize that, right?" Alex asked, with Seraphim in hand, the little Choir sphere already out and shooting at the nearest zombies. "You need the Orbs more than me. Go nuts." He then stopped to think for a moment.

"Also, you need to work out the frustration of being wrong about the zombies, so killing them all should be therapeutic enough."

Sol just silently flipped Alex the bird and uncoiled Gevauden before angrily slicing into the horde, the demonic weapon parting putrefied flesh as easily as a hot knife through butter. Sol let his anger carry him forward, always keeping some distance from the horde, though. He'd seen more than enough zombie movies and played enough resident evil to know damn well that getting surrounded was to invite the ants and scorpion analogy.

He didn't quite know how many he was cutting down, but he began to realize that if it weren't for the rotting features, they'd look… almost normal. The effects of poisoned fruit of the L enhancements were ever present, but the question was still in the back of his mind, where had they come from?

Alex was hanging back, taking potshots at those who were managing to avoid Gevaudan's blade and were starting to get too close to Sol. At least, until he stopped and looked upwards.

"There are a lot of crows in the sky." His voice was normal, barely loud enough to let Sol hear it.

Sol heard the observation while using Binding Life on a zombie, noting with no small measure of disgust how the body dried into a husk before lifting it and throwing it into the dwindling horde. Backpedaling, he looked at Alex and then at the sky. There were a lot of crows and… had they even seen other animals here? He voiced that question immediately.

"Alex, when was the last time you saw an animal here!?"

"Yeah, kinda my point." Alex's face was worryingly expressionless. Just a blank slate without any kind of hint of humanity. Then, a moment later, a series of bullets flew towards the birds.

Several hit, and instead of a shower of feathers, blood, and meat, only dark smoke remained.

"Not true crows. They're constructs. Someone's using them for… something. I'm going to hazard a guess that they are spying on us. And, considering the thematic ties that crows have to death, I'm going to say that it's the same one that is creating and controlling these zombies."

Sol nodded before calling out, "Fire on those crows. It may piss off whoever is using them and draw them here! Shit, they're probably using the zombies as shock troops!" Sol finished before cleaving through the skull of another zombie.

"Shock troops? I think you mean Free Red Orbs!" Alex answered with a grin, giving Sol finger guns before jumping and flying upwards, standing on Calcabrina. Once he reached the same height as the crows, he started shooting as fast as he could, spheres of energy hitting and missing in equal measure, covering the skies in dark smoke.

Sol fired on several more undead before trying to scan the sky. "This is like House of the Dead. Fuck, I'm actually expecting Hanged Man Type-041 to show up any minute with these birds." He thought frantically.

More and more zombies started coming and shambling forward as a solid mass of undead. The smell of their rotting flesh filling the air. There were enough that even Sol and Alex were starting to have a bit of a problem.

It was exactly as Rodin said: quantity had a quality all of its own.

"What will it take for you all to remain dead?!" Alex's shout was followed by a blast of sound that gave both Sol and him a few moments of respite.

Only for the crows to start cawing, echoing one another, until the cacophony was so high that no one could hear anything. Then, like a fountain in reverse, the crows fell downwards, an almost solid mass of black feathers obscuring the sight of everyone.

And then, a man stepped out. Dressed in a black cloak, a wooden staff with a red gem atop it, and two crow wings behind him, he looked at them with malevolent red eyes.

"Well, shit… that explains why we couldn't recognize the corpses," Sol said, realizing the color of the eyes of the summoner.

"These were your people, weren't they!?" Sol asked angrily.

The Red Eyes didn't answer, only cocked the head to the side, analyzing Sol. Specifically his arm.

"You have… No, that's not just a graft. The melding of the energies in you is unstable but much more refined than if you just decided to replace your arm with a demon one. How did you do that?" The Red-Eyed man asked.

"You should know that yourself!" Sol shot back, pointing at the Red Eyed man's wings.

"These have been gained by pouring more and more power, killing and killing until the entity that gave us power let us gain a new level of existence. A new height of existence." His words, while calm, were lit with a fanatic's fervor. "Yours, however, is different. Tell me, and I will spare your life."

Sol looked at Alex, horror plainly written over his face. "He… he's just like Goode." Turning back to the man, Sol spoke. "You dumb bastard, any part of you that was human was forfeit when you submitted. We killed one of you before, and we'll do it again."

"You know, I would honestly be more polite. Ask what you want to be called, try to chat or something. But, really, I don't need to do so anymore. And I don't want to do so, either." Alex said absentmindedly before pointing at him with Calcabrina.

"So, I'm going to ask just a single question: What's your name?"

The Red Eyes gave the impression that he was smiling - although his entire face was obscured by the hood of his cloak - and tapped the staff on the ground a few times, wings ruffling and unfurling.

CALLUM ALEXANDER: NECROMANTIC HYBRID​

"Callum, you may call me Callum." The now-identified hybrid spoke.

Alex raised a single eyebrow. "Nice to meet you."

And then he shot a beam from the tip of his umbrella, only for Callum to explode into a swarm of crows and reappear a few feet to the side. "Expected."

Alex smiled. "Worth an attempt." And then he, too, vanished into a silver Blink before his blade came down on the necromancer's head.

The necromancer raised his staff in defense. There was a flash of demonic energy before he disappeared into a murder of crows in partial retreat.

"Missed. Well, on to the next attempt." Seraphim appeared in his hands, and a Choir manifested around Alex, already shooting at the enemies around him. Then, he started shooting, waves of sound that vibrated the zombies apart.

"Won't you stay still and let yourself be killed?" Alex asked angrily.

From the murder of crows, Callum's voice rang out, "Why should I? I wish to live beyond this place and bask in my power."

From the murder, a pale light began to manifest before streaking towards Alex.

With a twist of his wrists, Seraphim was stowed away, and Calcabrina opened in front of him, magic blazing on the surface of the canopy in a barrier made of interlocked symbols. The streak of light impacted against the umbrella and shattered in shards of light.

"Oh, please! As if you are going to live after the demon that lent you his powers will reclaim it! You'll be an empty shell if you're lucky and a puppet if you're not!"

From behind the umbrella, Alex started channeling his magic into the umbrella, the entire surface of the canopy shining with silvery light. It was like a giant light spot on him. As far as he considered it, it was all well and good: the more Callum focused on him, the more time and space Sol had to act.

To which he did. In the moments between Callum shifting into the murder and Alex's counterattack, Sol had used a zombie as a platform before air hiking for further height. At the peak of his jump, Sol lashed out with Gevauden. This time, lady luck was on his side as the bone whip wrapped itself tightly around Callum's staff. Sol began to fly below the murder, only avoiding the grasping rotting hands below by bringing his knees as close to his chest as possible.

The movement of the murder of crows began to shift and grow more violent. Briefly, Callum could be seen among the crows, trying to unwind the whip from his staff before taking it in both hands and swinging. The act changed Sol's flight path and sent him to the manor's second floor. With a resounding crash, Sol slammed into a window and disappeared for a moment, and then the murder halted as Gevauden had yet to relinquish its hold.

A moment later, a giant beam of energy shot from Alex's position. It wasn't faster than his normal beams, but the destructive potential was much, much higher. Sadly, the size and the glow before the firing would have made it very easy to spot.

Unless someone was unable to move for some reason. Like… something was blocking their weapons and stopping them from dodging before the beam hit.

In the second story of the manor, Sol was holding the whip in a death grip and had his legs wrapped around the leg of a heavy armoire. Ignoring the glass poking into his arms, he began to pull on Gevauden's whip, keeping the hybrid in one position and also closer to Alex's shots.

Callum was attempting to unwind the whip from his staff and was almost successful, but between the shock of being caught in such and the sudden halting of movement, he was too preoccupied to account for Alex's shot. The magical attack hit him dead on, and the murder of crows lost much of their volume.

"Dead center."

Sadly, their success didn't last for long. The giant beam had sent the Red Eyes flying back, untangling the whip from his staff. So, with a hiss of fury, Callum got up once more, a dark nimbus of energy surrounding him. His wings opened in full, the feathers falling down and leaving only skeletal appendages.

"You were interesting enough that I wanted to study you, but you are clearly too dangerous for me. Die in agony." A smog-like mist started expanding from his position, anything that it touched decaying almost instantly.

And then a series of blasts came from the window, striking Callum several times.

"Thanks for starting the process of really getting rid of the zombies for us, but you can flock off with your 'Never Ending Story Nothingness' featherface." Sol's voice called out.

Internally, however, Sol's thoughts were a little different. "I really need to shorten my one-liners!"

"What makes you think that I'm done with the zombies?" Callum's voice was rather calm for someone who didn't have any zombies around him.

Well, until rotted hands rose from the ground, closing around him and stopping the hastily shot bullets that Alex had tried to use. More and more bodies rose, closing and fusing around him, in a mixture of melted flesh and amalgamated bone, growing and growing. Until it was a giant, taller than the house behind them, with bone armor and sparks of evil in its eyes.

Sol leaned out the window. "First, wow. Second, Clive Barker called and wants his nightmare fuel back." Before jumping out the window and using an Air Hike to arrest his momentum.

"Alex, are you good for this?" Sol asked, brevity gone from his voice, his left hand spasming briefly before he made a tight fist. This wasn't like before; there was only one opponent here, and it didn't have to go down that route.

"Yes." Alex's voice was rather low before he raised both of his arms. "If you can keep it busy for a few moments, I can do something to weigh the scale on our side." Silver-indigo light started collecting between his palms, almost like pollen.

"The only thing that that discount-rated necromancer did is give me a bigger target, after all."

"Can do," Sol said before holstering Nymphaeum and getting Gevauden ready.

"NOW DIE!" Callum's voice roared before attempting to attack the two. Sol managed to dodge several attempts of crushing him, using Time Step to clear several near misses before he attempted a somewhat… alright, incredibly risky plan. He could tell where Callum had hidden himself on the body, but it really didn't matter, as either he or Alex would get the shot.

Sol leaped between the legs of Callum's bone mech, used an Air Hiked to jump just above his waist, and began climbing along its back. His goal was to reach the base of the neck.

Sadly, it was not to be - for now - as the giant zombie was faster than it looked. With a spin, the monster twisted and slammed a hand against Sol, who managed to block with his own demonic arm thanks to the inhuman reflexes that he had gained in these last… well since he had gotten summoned here.

Then, after the giant had stopped moving, Alex acted.

"Slow down, will ya?" The pollen-look-like energy coalesced into a single bullet before it shot toward the giant, hitting it in the middle of the chest. And the monster started moving slowly. It was like he was going at half-speed.

Right after the shot hit, Alex started again charging his giant beam. "Go! It won't last forever!"

"R… Right!" Sol responded while getting up, his arm momentarily numb before spasming briefly. Wringing his hand, Sol made a second attempt. This time he made it to the neck joint and wrapped Gevauden around the bone mech's neck. Using Binding Life, Sol could feel himself getting stronger before he began to use Abyssal Punch on the neck joint.

The shockwave was more than enough to send the giant staggering forward - also in slow motion - before the attack that Alex was preparing slammed into it from the front, a blinding flash that lasted for at least three seconds before dying down.

Once it was done, the giant was… very damaged. Its chest had been cratered, the back of the neck looked like blades had sawed through it, and the dregs of the Slow spell that Alex had used were still slowing it down.

"I'm gonna slow it again! Keep it busy!" Again, Alex started collecting energy, silver light surrounding him.

"Sure thing!" Sol responded before leveling another Abyssal Punch at the back of Callum's Bone Mech Head. The bone mech lurched forward from the blow, and its descent slowed down to crawl through Alex's spell.

Within the mech, Callum was attempting to understand what was going on. Between the efforts of the two, the fighter and the sorcerer, he was at a loss. He could understand that the sorcerer cast something that improved their speed, making it more difficult for him to put them down like the threats they were. However, there was also another sensation, a slow, agonizing feeling of weakness that was leaching through his combined bodies. He knew that it was through the man with the demon arm that he was feeling this through. If he could only move fast enough!

Alex brought his hands down once more, the spell hitting the giant zombie and bringing it stumbling forward to a crawl. The sheer size of the whole thing made it extremely easy to hit. Still, Slowing something so big wasn't easy or simple: Alex was expending more energy than he could recover. If the fight went on for much longer, he would need to either stop trying to slow it down or find another option.

It took several more seconds and the realization that he was punching a rudimentary spine without a pilot in and or around said spine that Sol realized that he was wasting his time. Time which could have been used better elsewhere. His mind raced, and he began to think of places where Callum could be. If he were in the head area, he'd have seen something by now… so that probably meant the chest. Sol sighed, loosed some slack on Gevaudan and prepared himself for something potentially, no, absolutely stupid.

He shifted his weight and threw himself over the shoulder of the bone mech, making himself level with the chest. It was heavily damaged from Alex's last strikes and Sol was going to make it worse.

With a shout of Abyssal Punch, Sol began to punch as hard as he could. Each punch began to splinter the chest piece further, but not enough to do anything. Naturally, the lack of results and the potential for being crushed in the world's worst bone-based bear hug was enough to make Sol's next successive strike more frantic… more angry.

"Why. Won't. You. JUST. BREAK!!!" Sol roared as more demonic energy filled his strikes. Unknown to him, the energy surrounding him exploded into the same armored specter from before, its own fist adding to the assault. Finally, the cavity fully caved in on itself, and for an instant, Sol saw Callum's face before he tore the man from his mech. There was an awful tearing noise as Callum flew through the air, blood pouring from him and scattered feathers falling to the ground.

He landed between Sol's position and Alex, but his eyes were fixed on Sol. Wide, surprised, and scared eyes, he stumbled up.

"How… How can you do that?! Only the Leader can…" He was clearly dazed, and Alex would have gladly killed him on the spot, if his last Slow spell hadn't drained him enough to send him on his knee, clearly trying to recover his breath.

Sol dropped down and stalked towards Callum. "Humanity is a special thing. It gives us power that demons lack! That you lack! RESTRICTIVE SUFFERING!" Sol roared before unleashing Gevaudan once more. The bone whip broke apart as its shards mercilessly tore through Callum's body before reforging themselves into the complete form. The Red Eyed man stumbled back and, like a puppet whose strings were cut, collapsed onto the ground.

For the next few moments, Sol stood there, taking in the sight. The anger and adrenaline were bleeding off, and as the power he could feel in him faded, his arm violently twitched as he fell forward, specter vanishing from sight.

Alex was at his side, grabbing him and blocking his falling down on the corpse of the Red Eyes necromancer. The crows in the air, the residual mist, the dark energy in the air… everything vanished slowly, while Alex and Sol just stood there, breathing. Recovering from the intense fight they had just faced.

"Calm. Breathe slowly, ok? Take your time."

"Wha… that power… that was a rush… is he dead?" Sol asked between breaths.

"I think so. Still, to be safe…" Calcabrina arched in the air, and Callum's head was swiftly separated from the body. And then, it was incinerated by a beam of energy.

"To be safe." A moment later, the whole thing exploded into Red Orbs, an amount that surpassed any other they had seen before. From a single enemy, anyway.

"That, that should be enough," Sol said, struggling to get to his feet before falling again. His vision swam as felt an intense wave of sickness wash over him.

"Help me up, please. I don't… feel that great." Sol said quietly.

"Too much demonic energy in your system. You need to complete the hybridization before your arm rots off." Alex said, a matter of factly, trying to stop the trembling of his own hands, grabbing Sol from under his armpit and getting him up without a second of hesitation, already power-walking back towards the mansion.

"Also, don't be surprised if you see a sort of vision, like an anime cliche. It happened to me. You never know." His smile was strained, and he opened the door with a kick. The people that were behind it were also sent flying back.

"I need to reach the statue now. MOVE!" They all scrambled away from Alex's path, leaving a straight shot to the statue. He didn't wait.

Sol could hear, but he was feeling too ill to speak. His arm had stopped twitching and just hung at his side limply, unresponsive. He fell forward, stumbled to his feet and used what strength he had to grab the body of the Proto Angelo, pull it from Alex's binding circle, and to the statue.

"Too much, too much is riding on this!" He thought frantically as he approached the statue and fell against it.

The void greeted him, and the ever building nausea mostly faded, only to be replaced by an ebbing numbness that stemmed from his arm. He looked down at it. The pale white and blood-red undulating patterns were almost still, and he could just barely move it. With a shaky breath, Sol looked at the menu options and selected Perfect Hybridization (Proto Angelo - Full Body).

He could hear movement behind him, and he turned to see the body of the Proto Angelo lift up like a broken marionette and fly towards him. Instinctively he tried to protect himself and raised his arms in defense. It didn't matter. The moment the Proto Angelo's form touched his body, it began to alter, becoming a flowing yet solid shadow. Sol's mouth was open in a silent scream of agony as the demonic body became more and more entwined in his own.

His arm began to violently jerk and twist as the pale flesh began to darken to a hardened black material, reminiscent of an arthropod's sclerite plates, and the red lines altered into a more uniform pattern, violet lines flowing easily from his elbow down to the tips of his fingers. Sol's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he collapsed in the void, blinded by pain.

Yet he dreamed…

He heard what he believed was the sound of metal falling against metal, and then it resolved itself.

"Not metal, an instrument." He began to think before he heard the sound of footsteps.

"A man without shadow promises you the world. Tell him your dreams and fanatical needs." A voice began.

"He's buying them all… with cash." Sol finished before opening his eyes and looking up at himself.

His doppelganger grinned softly. "Dr. Mabuse. Couldn't think of a better track. We can't play instruments worth a damn, so I couldn't attempt anything from say… Gunhed."

"Who are you?" Sol asked while slowly getting to his feet.

"You… well, not entirely. The human you." The doppelganger answered, and Sol realized that he was looking at himself from before, more than likely before he first used the statue. The doppelganger still wore the red and black glasses, still wore his business casual clothes and not the armor he had been living in for who knows how many days or hours.

"Wha…?" He began before being cut off.

"Alex mentioned having a vision, and I guess this is it for us, and them…" The doppelganger said before pointing beyond Sol.

Turning, Sol saw a figure in the void. It was and was not the Proto Angelo. While almost complete and whole, an Abyss seemed to be fused with it at the left arm, hanging over the Proto Angelo's shoulders like a mockery of a cape.

"They're you, or your demonic half, now. Pretty poor conversationalists, but I can't say we were ever the ones to start conversations ourselves." The doppelganger gave a sigh before holding a copy of Gevaudan and continuing. "You know you have a choice to make. The same choice Alex made, the same choice Goode sorta made, and the same choice the Red Eyes made." He finished before holding out the sword to Sol.

Sol looked at the blade for what felt like an eternity before speaking. "Demon, Human, or Both. We can't go back to what I was any way we look at it, can we?" He asked.

The doppelganger gave a sad smile, and the fused demon moved to its opposite side. "If you and Alex managed to escape before you went too far in, then maybe, just maybe. But we both know that the physical state of our being isn't the question here. It's the spiritual one."

Sol was silent for a few moments before making his choice. "I can't change what I've done to myself. Whether it's tainted humans who become demons, and tainted demons who became human." Sol asked rhetorically before breathing. "What delicious irony, the universe is quite the comedian."

The doppelganger grinned again, "Paraphrasing Angel? I'll admit, the words of a Darwin-obsessed misanthrope may not be the best to use here… But I guess we can make a case that Sparda himself was one such demon. So? What will it be?" The doppelganger asked.

"Both. I'll accept both halves into myself. The body of a demon and the soul of a human. But you knew that already, didn't you?" Sol said in as resolute of a tone as he could manage. With that, the fused demon also took hold of Gevaudan, as did Sol.

The doppelganger gave Sol one last parting smile and spoke. "I'd suggest you get yourself a pair of sunglasses sooner rather than later. Irony can be quite the bitch, especially when they conjoin together in a situation such as this."

Before Sol could ask what the doppelganger meant, the void retreated, and he found himself slumped against the statue. He felt… better, better than he had in a while. Like he had taken a long nap and was ready to take on the day again. Pressing himself against the statue, he used it to stand back up. He looked down at his arm and noted its changes. It wasn't necessarily like Nero's arm, far less translucent but the more insect-like nature of the skin and claws was something that he knew he was going to have to get used to. If he'd had a mirror, he'd have also noticed two other changes. The first was that his hair had gone from dark brown to jet black, and the other was that the color of his eyes had changed from a similar shade of brown to a deep red.

"Sol? Are you ok?" Alex's voice could be heard over the sudden silence that fell on the room, the various people inside looking amazed at what was happening to Sol.

"Please tell me that you are still you." Alex almost pleaded before smacking a guy on his mouth to stop him from saying anything.

Sol blinked several times before asking, "Why wouldn't I be? I mean, yeah, I encountered a doppelganger of myself singing Dr. Mabuse, but the worst part was the pain. After that, it was all existential questions and SMT."

"Oh, good. I was kinda worried. Well, welcome to the ranks of the partially demonic. Hope you'll have fun with the empowered physique, super regeneration, and more magic." Then he lowered his voice to a whisper and spoke directly in his ear.

"Also, libido goes up a bit. Don't worry about that."

After that, he turned towards the rest of the room. "We're not a circus attraction, you know? Go on, go back to the other room!"

The crowd began to move back and away from them, and Sol gave Alex a look. "If that part is true, then how the hell does that explain Dante, or does he just transfer that to pizza and sundaes?"

Alex shrugged. "No idea. I mean, violence, maybe? Beyond that, we have no idea how Dante behaved while not being immersed in violence, so…" And he shrugged once more.

Sol just quirked a brow before saying, "God, I bet it's all just fixations, like the pizza and strawberry sundaes."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Red Eyes #2 is down! I repeat Red Eyes #2 is down! Only four more to go of this merry band of psychopaths, as well as whatever else lurks within this twisted parody of the world. Now, that's not to say we're done with Sparda Manor. There's still some business to take care of in the upper and lower floors.

I will seriously try to update Enemy and Shop info over the next few days. It's just been kinda, and certain plans of mine were derailed because of the weather and a poor sleep schedule over the last two days. Please, do not try to edit and perform final checks on a chapter at 11:00-ish pm. I wanted to get this chapter out last night, but after a certain point, I realized I just couldn't make successful changes.

Enjoy everyone!

 

[Atma]

"That would explain why I raged out when tearing Callum out of his bone mech. I'm going to have to figure out how to channel that properly." Sol said before looking at his hand again.

"Two down right, that leaves what? Four left?" Sol asked hesitantly.

"Yeah. Four, and then the mastermind of this whole thing." Alex murmured before turning. And dithering for a moment before turning back to Sol.

"Wanna know something?" His voice was rather dejected, and he slowly let himself fall down until he was fully seated on the ground. "I'm tired. Mentally, I mean. This whole situation is a crisis after each other, with no moment of respite. It's exhausting."

"Tell me about it." Sol slumped against the table. "Five legitimate battles we can't avoid, and then home. Going to need a long glove for the future, damn Abyss." Sol paused, a pensive look on his face. "My doppelganger mentioned something about needing sunglasses. What'd he mean by that?"

"Oh." Alex turned towards Sol before grimacing. "Yeah… you got Red Eyes. Sorry."

Sol gave a look before shouting, "Fuck! Of fucking course, I'd get red eyes. Oh, that son of a bitching demon is going to get it now." Sol said while clenching his fist.

"Calm down. You can always use colored contact lenses or… I don't know. Maybe there's some kind of magic I can find. It's not the end of the world." Then Alex looked to the side, a bit hesitant.

"And if it's too much, you can always… take a demon's eyes. You know." He gestured towards the arm.

Sol raised both hands in a placative motion. "I already have technical demon eyes and I don't feel like getting a new pair. I'll explain it under partial albinism."

****************************

While Sol and Alex were talking near the statue of time on the first floor, the individuals that had holed up in the mansion began to move throughout the property, most staying within their five-person groups except for two.

"Look, you really trust those guys!? I mean, dammit, one of their arms is all demon-y and shit!" Ian Chrysler half asked, and half yelled as he and his girl, Sadie Dullea, trudged down a hallway that seemed much longer than it actually was.

"And why not!" Sadie hissed, "They knew what they were doing and were obviously willing to tell us!"

"Didn't stop you from coming onto one of them!" Ian shot back.

"So!? It's not like he was interested!"

The two stopped in the hallway and began to argue for several minutes. Barbs were exchanged frequently, and by the end of it, the two people, while not physically exhausted, were emotionally drained.

Ian leaned back against that, in his eyes, wasn't adorned with one of the creepy paintings that seemed to be everywhere here, and slowly banged the back of his head against the wall.

"Look, it's just… it's just that you're my girl, and I want us to get out of here. I mean, we're in hell, apparently, so all we need to do is…

Ian never finished that sentence. If he hadn't been tapping the wall with his head, if he had been less drained, and if he had had the time to truly understand the enhancements that were recommended to him, he would have heard the telltale sound of something pressing against the other side of the wall. Because of his lack of awareness, he was unprepared for the sudden explosion of motion and wood around him as a pair of hands tore through the wall and partially pulled him inside it. He struggled briefly, desperately trying to get any form of leverage he could.

Sadie screamed and watched, horrified before his body jerked and fell limp. It slid down from the partially destroyed wall, missing its head. Then she heard it, a soft feminine voice that was singing and moving.

"Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream. Make him the cutest that I've ever seen."

The wall to her right exploded as a figure leaped out onto her. Disorientated, Sadie tried to push the figure off her before her eyes were drawn up, past a pair of large shears and into a hellish pair of Red Eyes.

******************************************

The sound of the scream made Alex stiffen in surprise before turning towards the origin of the sound.

"Did you hear that?" And, without waiting for an answer, he blinked away, already beyond the door.

Sol was quick to follow. He'd heard the scream too. Did a zombie or two get in? Was it a last fuck you from Callum? Dammit, they should have taken the time to investigate this place as much as possible.

Sol managed to reach Alex, who was just standing in the middle of a hallway a few doors away from the room of the statue. The rest of the people were looking from the main hall, horrified. Alex was cold.

In the middle of the hallway, there was a decapitated corpse partway into the wall. The second corpse, on the other hand, had been cut to pieces, leaving only the head intact. And, on the wall, there was a message.

For everyone inside the Manor.

"This was just a Dress Rehearsal! You all may have impressive power, but it's nowhere near enough to free yourselves of this nightmare! So give up your hearts and embrace the hell around you!" ​

"Wha… what the fuck!?" Sol asked, horrified.

"I don't know," Alex said, as cold as the tundra. "But I will find who did this. And I will kill them. Not doing so is something I cannot fathom." Silver light was shining from behind his eyes, hiding the features of his face.

"Help try to find any trace. Did anyone see anything? Speak now. Your lives may be in danger if you don't. Not from me." He added the last part to make it absolutely clear that it wasn't him threatening someone.

Someone raised a hand, and as Sol looked at the person, he realized it was the guy who had been asking the stupid questions ever since they got there.

"I… I think I saw someone head upstairs. I thought I knew 'em, but they didn't look right." He seemed to be deep in thought before something came to him. "They were also carrying scissors, big ass scissors. The kind where you need both hands just to use them."

Alex didn't facepalm, but it was clearly something that he wanted to do. Instead, he nodded towards the guy. "Thanks, that helps. Now, the main problem is… How do we do this."

Seeing the confused look that many people were sporting, Alex elaborated further.

"If one of us goes upstairs, one of us needs to stay here to protect you all. If both of us go upstairs, we may find the killer faster, but you all would also be without anyone to help in case they come back down. If none of us goes upstairs, the killer is free to roam as they please. You see what the conundrum is?"

After Alex was done explaining, the college kids were clearly terrified. But they weren't also able to say anything, so they were absolutely no help.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but the first rule of horror movies is to not split up. I'd rather not look for a psycho killer in a mansion like this but… My guess is that this was the work of the same people the necromancer was with." Sol looked at the crowd before continuing. "Everyone, head back into the room with the statue and close those doors behind you. Stay in there for now." Sol finished before motioning the bane of his existence to him.

The man complied, and Sol pulled him close before whispering. "The wall may have ears. If shit goes south, head out past the garden and up through the sewers. Go past the man-made ice rink, and you should find a group of people like Alex and I. They're good people. Just let them know we sent you guys. Tell the others when you close those doors behind you." Sol finished before directing him back to the crowd.

Sol looked at Alex before asking. "Okay, so how do you want to fly in the face of all that is common sense in a horror movie?"

"I mean, usually, the people in horror movies are haunted by monsters, demons, and murderers. Considering that we fall in all three categories, I think the tropes are on our side." Alex smiled glibly at the situation before closing his eyes and murmuring a short prayer for the two victims.

"You know what's the main problem here? We can't even bring these poor kids back. Because…" He tapped the beheaded corpse with Calcabrina, and it vanished into Red Orbs. "...this happens."

Sol sighed and touched the other set of remains, "I'm not sure what to follow anymore, but we can only hope that they have some measure of peace."

Looking at the crowd, he said. "Get into that room and hole up there until we come back." He looked to Booze, who just gave a shaky nod as the people moved into the statue room.

"Alright, Alex, are you ready to find this bastard?"

Alex took a long, deep breath before nodding. "Yes. Let's go."

****************************************************

The upper floor of the manor was completely uninhabited. Doors and hallways lay empty and without any kind of sign that life was still there.

There was no dust. Only empty halls. And silence.

The sound of two sets of steps was the only thing that broke it. Alex and Sol kept a normal pace through their entire inspection of the place. Normally, they would be tense or scared by the situation, but after what had happened to them in the previous days, this felt just like another day, if a bit more dangerous.

"Do you think it's another Red Eyes?" Suddenly Alex asked, not looking away from the walls of the room they were searching.

"Honestly, at this point, I wouldn't be surprised. We've already killed two of them and did so with enough of a racket to draw anyone or anything down on us. Granted, it could be a very smart demon that is fully capable of communicating, but that message… That part about giving up your hearts reminds me too much of what that first one, Allan, said." Sol answered while warily looking into as many off-corners from as safe a distance as he could.

"Right, he did say something about that… Honestly, I had forgotten, he sounded a lot like a nazi, so I wasn't really listening to him." Alex answered before moving out of the room and towards another one. "But yeah, he did say something about that. Still… If it's another Red Eyes, I'm not all that sure that we can save the rest of them."

He sighed, before he kept looking around.

The halls and rooms were seemingly empty, though there was something. There were several drops of blood that seemed to start and end without making sense.

"Alex… are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Sol asked quietly.

*Snip!*

Sol's ears perked up, and with Nymphaeum drawn, he carefully approached the entrance to the hallway before a flash of blades dominated his vision. He managed to raise his gun just in time to block the strike but felt a fist strike him just beneath the ribs. He doubted it would have done much, but the blow caught him off guard and sent him back away.

From the hallway, there was the sound of rapidly fading footsteps and a grim laugh.

"Shit, they were waiting for us!" Sol shouted in alarm.

Alex's eyes went dark. "Not for long. Haste, haste." Twin silver auras appeared around the two hybrids, and everything around them slowed down.

The long-haired guy turned towards Sol. "One of my powers. Consider it a temporary buff to speed. It won't last that long, so we need to move." And off he went, air distorting and dust flying at his passage.

"Right!" Sol said, following Alex.

After several moments of chasing spotty blood trails further through the mansion, Sol had come to a slight realization. If he was going to be honest, he vastly preferred this version of Alex's travel spells to the flying options. Of course, all good things had to come to an end. The trail had led around a corner to a hallway that seemed to stretch on forever.

There was a silence that seemed to drag on forever before an ever-so-slight creak drew Sol's attention. On reflex, he fired, the blast going through a wall or so. Just as it dissipated, he could make out the silhouette of a figure moving out of something before disappearing.

"Okay, looks like the house is playing merry havoc. What do you think we should do?" Sol asked in a low voice.

"I'm gonna assume that breaking through all the walls is not an option." Alex's voice was normal, if a little bit more tired. The aura around the two faltered and then vanished, the spell having reached the natural end.

"So, we either Pincer Maneuver them or we beat them in speed. Considering that we don't know where they are…" And he shrugged before shooting a bullet down the darkened hallway. It threw barely enough light to illuminate the staircase going up at the end… And a silhouette was going upwards.

"Found them, apparently. What are the chances that this is a trap?" Even as he asked, it was clear that he didn't believe that this was anything BUT a trap. It lined up too perfectly. "And, more importantly, what are the chances that we are able to make it go and escape before it cuts our necks?"

"Somewhere between likely and absolutely," Sol said easily. "How about we spring it guns blazing? Show this bastard we're not easy victims."

"Sure, that works. Want to do the honors?" Alex asked jokingly before walking down the hallway towards the stairs. It was time for the killer to face the monsters.

"Well, she nearly took my head the last time, so sure, why not?" Sol said

Sol began to lead the way with some manner of gusto. That gusto quickly began to die as the hallway began to reveal more of its tricks. The first obstacle was a false ending to the hallway. The end was a painted wall whose depth and scope were constructed in a way that gave the illusion of a longer hallway. This soon became a standard for the floor. There were, however, turns that allowed for further pursuit. Several times, there was a noise that indicated a third presence, and it didn't take much for the two to realize who it could have been. They even fired in the general direction of the noise but never quite hit the mark. The hallways began to lead into various interconnected rooms and locked doors.

At several points, there were no doors or hallways leading forward. However, half-circle drag marks along the floor hinted at the truth. Several of the walls could be pushed along one side to expose additional routes and passages that wouldn't have been known otherwise. Using these new passages. The two continued onward until they eventually reached an unassuming stairwell leading to a final floor.

"An attic… that's somewhat cliche," Sol said quietly.

"Assuming it's not another maze like the one we have just left behind, anyway," Alex grumbled, a vein on his forehead quietly pulsing. He was clearly angry.

"Let's go and find this one. I'm going to assume from the lack of shouts and yells from underneath us that they are actively up here, instead of a floor down, slaughtering the others." And, without waiting any more, he started climbing the stairs.

Sol was quick to follow.

The stairway opened to a rather large attic space, one that could have matched the footprint of the manor. It was obvious that the attic had been used for some degree of storage. Not a terrible amount, as there was more than enough space to easily move around or potentially fight. That being said, the star of the attic's attraction was a woman sitting in the far corner. Her back was to them, but she could easily see the two in the reflection of a large mirror. Her pale skin contrasted with her dark clothing and the dark red of her hair readily evoked the idea of a vampire.

She looked at them in the reflection, smirked, and began to drink from what looked to be a glass of wine.

"You know," She began, a lilting accent evident in her voice. "I look at this, I drink this, and I can't help but think, 'Is this wine a memory? Is it real? Will I drink this, thinking it is of vintage only to taste dust?' This whole place is a joke! But!" She stood quickly before draining the glass. "I know what is real here, these people, you, and me." She finished with a light cackle, her other hand slipping into her to retrieve a pair of large, ornate scissors.

"And that's what makes it so fun to kill them!"

Alex didn't say anything for a moment before blinking. "I didn't know that there was a Slut Topic around here. What, Hot Topic, was out of clothes? You had to go and shop at the Bimbo Store for some?"

Then he raised an eyebrow. "Not that they had any, considering how are you… well, let's say dressed. If we can call it that." And he gestured at her body.

The woman let out a booming laugh. "Hahahaha! Oh, that's what I've missed! No one has had the time for goddamned jokes around here. I've had to really work for that and no one seems to be willing to join in. Allan always had his head up his own arse, too focused on his boring little past to embrace our hell. Callum? He really thought that he was given that power. We siphoned off his orbs and gave it to him. Oh, I saw that little fight. You two really tore him a new one, hahaha." She trailed off, her laugh filling the attic.

"And don't even get me started on Ivan and Gabrielle. 'Mr. I can't let anyone fight back because I can't bear the idea of anyone being better than me' and 'Ms. Strict and Prim!' She angrily snipped at the air with her shears. "She's a real leal-hound, that one. All Zeke has to do is tell her to jump, and she already knows how high. Ah, they're no fun." She said in mock sorrow.

"Mhhhhmhh…" Alex didn't even say anything. He just tapped the tip of his umbrella on the floor. "And you are obviously the life of the party." The sarcasm was so thick that one could cut through it with a knife.

To Sol, however, there was something strange in how he was tapping on the ground. It was too regular, too precise.

"Oh, absolutely! You have to have one, otherwise there's nothing worth doing! We're in hell. Why shouldn't we enjoy ourselves?" She said before taking a step forward.

Sol, attempting to buy some time for Alex, spoke up. "You mentioned that you siphoned Callum's red orbs. How? From what I understand, you can only make your own purchases with your own power."

She stopped, and, smiling wider, answered. "Our leader… has a, let's just say, an arrangement. Gives him a little something extra, but that won't matter to you to know, would it?" She finished before making a more intent-filled approach.

"Why? Because you are going to kill us here? I thought you would have tried to be smarter than that." Alex added blithely, stopping her cold, a look of fury on her face.

"I mean, it seemed like that, no? The smart thing. If what you said is true, then your leader is the only other one that has some brain cells in his head." Alex continued.

The levity was gone from her face. "Ivan likes to make people writhe, but I'll make you scream. Come on!" She yelled, throwing the empty wine glass at the two before charging.

Alex smiled like a shark greeting their prey.

"Yeah, I guessed you weren't all that smart." Calcabrina tapped the ground one last time before a veritable web of silver-indigo-purple symbols exploded from under his feet. The spidery writing shot on the floor before crawling upward the walls and, finally, closing above them on the ceiling.

The Red Eyes stopped her movement and jumped back, her weapon raised and ready for anything that was coming. Except that nothing else happened.

"Right, we forgot to present ourselves. I'm Alex, he's Sol. What's your name?" Again, he smiled, all teeth and no warmth.

Her gaze was locked on the symbols before looking at Sol and Alex. As she did, her smile returned, wider than before.

"Laura, Laura Fanu." She spoke before readying her sheers.

LAURA FANU: BLOODSTAINED HYBRID​

"Fanu. Fanu. Now, where did I hear that name?" Alex hummed, his umbrella tapping on the ground once more, his eyes turned upwards in a mimicry of a thinking pose.

"Mhhhh…. A literary vampire, maybe? Interview with a Vampire? No, there was no character with Fanu in their name… Dracula? No, she was named Mina… Carmilla, maybe? One of the oldest vampire stories…" Alex continued to muse.

Maybe it was the nonchalance that Alex was displaying or the witty way he was speaking, but Laura's temper kept rising.

"It was Carmilla, you bloody philistine. From Le Fanu, and not the works of Polidori or that bloody frog Feval and his city of Black Jasper!" She hissed before stepping forward.

"So you are right. Sorry, I never read Carmilla or the others, never liked the style all that much. But I'm guessing it's a sore point for you? What, you got insulted in class?" Alex didn't seem to care that he was insulting her and probably hitting some buttons that shouldn't be pressed.

"Tough luck, kid. If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen." And he pointed that by shooting a charged bullet from the tip of Calcabrina straight at Laura's face.

She dodged out of the way and lunged toward Alex. "Wasn't made fun of, I fucking love that book!" She howled, her blades mere inches from Alex.

Alex's eyes flashed silver, and he bent backward, his back almost parallel with the ground, before he planted the tip of Calcabrina in Laura's gut.

"Buh-bye." And he shot a beam from it, pushing in as much energy as he could.

She managed to parry it with her shears before Gevauden wrapped itself around her. Before Sol could do anything else, she began to rapidly turn towards him, uncoiling herself from Gevuaden and closing the distance.

"I saw that trick with Callum. You better try a new one because that one is getting old!" She yelled while trying to stab Sol with her shears.

"Slow." The silvery aura that surrounded her was sudden and without warning. With her size, a more normal, human one, Alex didn't have to stay still and charge it as much as it could. Something that she couldn't have predicted in any way or form.

"Try this for size." Seraphim twirled in his hands before a wave of sound shot straight towards her.

The blast hit her dead on, sending her flying back into the wall behind her. It buckled briefly before reshaping itself. Despite the effects of Alex's spell, she seemed to be moving, albeit with no small degree of pain. At the point of impact, her clothes had been scorched, and what little skin could be seen already showed the signs of deep bruising. However, while her movements were much slower than before, there was still enough intent with them to imply that she knew she had been slowed.

Sol took the opportunity to attack with a Stinger aimed at her head. She seemed to compensate for her lack of speed and managed to dodge the strike. Two things happened in the ensuing moment. The first was that Sol seemingly bounced back from the wall as his sword barely missed her and struck it. The second was that he hadn't missed completely. There was a thin line of blood slowly leaking down the side of her right cheek.

Her smile slowly began to reassert itself.

"Ah ah. No smiling. You are not winning this." Alex had Calcabrina in his hands before he unsheathed the blade, holding the sheath firmly in his hand. "Let's make this more interesting. Puppet Waltz!"

Then, in a movement that almost looked easy, he opened the canopy of the umbrella and started twirling, the tassels at the edges of the spokes slashing the air apart, forming what sounded a lot like a fan.

Laura blinked at him, looking at the way he was twisting the umbrella, before raising her eyes up to Alex's own. "What… exactly is that? I mean, it's an umb-"

Rays of energy shot from each and every tassel, forming what could be generously called a wall of energy rays. That was strong enough to cut apart all the dust-covered furniture around the place. And also hitting Fanu, the wound running from her shoulder to her hip, eliciting a shout of pain and a hasty roll to the side where Sol was.

She was, at least, smart enough to understand that Alex wouldn't risk injuring Sol.

*****************************

The sounds of battle had finally died as the last Abyss tried to claw at Ivan's leg. He smiled a thin, sickly smile and pressed the spikes of his axe against the demon's neck. Slowly, he'd push it further and further in, watch as the demon panicked and moved just enough to…

*Crunch!*

Ivan recoiled as Gabrielle's heel crushed the demon's head. He looked at her and, in a rage, began to advance on her.

"That was mine, you bitch! Not yours! You should know better than to…"

He stopped as he felt a hand rest itself atop his shoulder.

"Ivan," A soft, quiet voice spoke. "Need I remind you that we are in this together?"

Ivan swallowed on reflex, and he realized something was pressed against his stomach. One of Gabrielle's fans was lazily held against him. He met her eyes and saw that ever-present quiet disdain for his existence. He was about to say something when she spoke.

"Sir?" She asked the question's true meaning, which was evident by her tone and preparedness.

That familiar rage began to creep back into his vision before the weight on his shoulder shifted in a grip.

"We've lost two already. Do you think infighting is really the best course of action at this time? No, no need for that Gabrielle, you may calm yourself for now."

Gabrielle gave a sharp nod before retracting her fan and walking away from the two. Ivan could still feel the light grip on his shoulder, the subtle twinges of current that raced under the other man's hand.

"Ivan, you understand too, yes?" The voice spoke again.

"Y… yes, sir." Ivan choked out.

"Good, now turn around and face me."

Ivan took a shaky breath, turned, and faced Zeke in all his glory. At a glance, the combination of Zeke's sharp facial features and relaxed body language gave off the image of a movie star or a model. Ivan envied the other man for that reason, among others, but that image was shattered by everything else. Zeke was covered from head to toe in the remains and gore of other demons. His suit seemed to drink the color of the ichor that was splattered across it, and his spear was still buried in the twitching remains of an Abyss. His face, though, was the worst as his emotionless gaze never wavered from meeting Ivan's eyes, even as blood and sweat dripped from his face and long hair.

"Have you seen what I've done? What Gabrielle has done? You have great potential, truly." Zeke said softly as he began to further close the distance between the two causing Ivan to reflexively step away. For a moment, there was actual irritation on their leader's face before it faded away.

"Stop wasting time. You may indulge your fantasies later. However, power… waits for no one. A lesson Allan and Callum should have taken to heart." Zeke said before moving past Ivan.

Ivan, realizing that his hands and legs were currently shaking, stilled himself before something dawned on him. Was Callum dead!? He knew Allan had died, the little runt that he was, but Callum? How did Zeke know, and why wasn't he doing anything?

Ivan opened his mouth to ask before Zeke turned with a disturbingly faint smile.

"I have my ways. Laura should be dealing with the cadre of survivors in that area now. She'll return to us sooner or later." Zeke finished before turning and walking to match pace with Gabrielle, small discharges of thunder leaving themselves in his wake.

Ivan could only stand and stew in his embarrassment. No one could be better than he was. He had crawled his way to where he was before here. He made it to the top, and dammit all, no glorified maid, blood-drunk fool, or emotionless freak were going to one-up him! He'd show them, he'd make them writhe! Ivan grinned at the thought before looking back the way they came. It would be so easy just to slip away now…

Further ahead, the two remaining Red Eyes walked side by side in companionable silence. Gabrielle whipped blood and viscera from her vision, minding the edges of her gauntlets. She looked at Zeke before speaking softly. "He's going to betray us, sir. You must be aware of that."

Zeke, not looking at her, softly smiled before responding. "I'm fully aware, but I trust Laura can handle him with enough effort. And if not, more for us."

Gabrielle could only nod at Zeke's assessment, and together, the two walked further into the depths of hell.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Lusachia groaned in pleasurable anguish as its bulk shook and changed again. Its plan had been, to this point, a success, far beyond what it could have hoped for. These humans feeding their souls and bodies to it without care for their future were perfect, never knowing the true cost. It began to wonder whether or not this was what the fallen Lord Mundus had experienced. Surely the taste of that vaunted fruit was a greater rapture than this.

Lusachia paused and began to think of a new plan, one to instigate after this. Finding another Qliphoth seed would take some time, but with Zeke, it would have the luxury of a more discreet actor to work from.

Thinking about its avatar made Lusachia's second face twitch and grimace. This movement reminded Lusachia of its growing problem. Losing the one known as Allan was not a call for concern. The former human had ultimately been weak and would have died anyway to either Laura or Ivan in due time. Callum, though, that was an issue. His skills made an excellent incentive for wandering humans to acquire as much power as possible. With his death, Lusachia would have to rely on roving packs of demons to naturally find what humans remained.

And then there was the other problem. The last batch of humans had clearly made it here, yet its connection to them was pitifully weak despite its message. What could have caused that? Hmmmm… it'd have to see, to understand and…

"Gah!!!"

Lusachia paused in its musing and followed the sensation of sudden pain to one of its precious Red-Eyed hybrids. What was going on here? Lusachia questioned before beginning to look at its connection to that hybrid.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
*****************************

Unknown to the participants of the battle, Laura's eyes began to change. The whites of her eyes slowly shifted into a deep purple. With a snarl, Laura raised her arms above her head and tore her bodice shears in two.

"Alright, you fucks, you wish to take me on at the same time? Fine, I'll bathe in your damned blood before I work over those fools below!" She finished before charging the duo.

With the umbrella part of the weapon in his left hand and busy twirling it to form a buzzsaw of energy rays, Alex not only had to protect himself with only the sword but also be careful not to injure Sol.

Surprisingly, it wasn't that big of a problem.

Not when he conjured a bubble of slowed time right before himself when Laura was attempting to hit him with an overhand chop that, if it connected, would have divided him in two. Instead, her weapon stopped advancing as if it was stuck in superglue, prompting her to retreat. The way her arm pulsed and contracted showed how much power she was exerting not to let her blade fall behind.

Without a word, Sol had come around and swung down with his sword. Laura twisted her body and parried his weapon, driving the blade into the floor before slashing at his face. Sol backpedaled and fired his gun at her. The blast hit her in the hand she had attempted to slash at Sol with. It was a testament to her own enhancement and will that not only had the hand remained intact, if not severely damaged, but that she was also still holding half of the shear.

"You're fast," Alex commented before his eyes glowed silver, and a silver aura appeared around Laura again. Her movements slowed down once more.

"But I'm better." And Alex smirked, before twisting on his foot and slamming the heel of his boots against her midsection, sending her towards the walls, before turning and shifting his left hand.

Laura saw the whole thing almost as if she was in slow motion: her uncontrolled flight towards the wall, the movement of the chainsaw of lasers coming towards her. And then light and pain. When she landed on the other side, the front of her body looked like she had passed through a super-heated cheese grater, with what looked like sunburns, cuts, and pieces of shaved flesh hanging from her body.

She clawed at the floor before her hands found her shears, and she used them in an attempt to stabilize herself before collapsing forward.

"I'l… I'll kill you. I'll kill you…" She began to mutter as she kept trying to stand before her body seemed to stutter and warp. It was only for a moment, but as she solidified, it was as if something forced her to the ground. The symbols of Alex's spells that had adorned the walls flared briefly before returning to their original state.

"Wha… What the hell is this? What did you do!?" She howled.

Alex hummed, a self-satisfied expression on his face, the canopy of Calcabrina in his hands closing down, the effect of his technique having run its course. "I'm not stupid, you know? And this isn't my first rodeo, either. So, I've chosen to take some… precautions. You see the symbols around the room?" He gestured grandly towards the walls, floor, and ceiling.

"Those create what is basically a Closed Box. In other words… Welcome to your Boss Battle. Permadeath is enabled, as you well know. Let's see if you can survive."

"This is… I'll rip your bloody hearts out!" She roared before a purple aura began to emanate from her body. There was something there, a change, a feeling of power.

"You mean you will try. And, my dear, you will fail. He and I are not like those kids you ambushed before. Oh, you thought we didn't notice?" Alex's smile was as sharp as his blade, which was now whistling through the air, as he twirled it in his hands.

"You are specialized in ambushes. It's plain as day. The attack from the wall, the run in the maze, the power to phase through walls? You could have stopped and given us a lecture."

Sol spoke in a more solemn tone, "You didn't have to kill those kids. Sure, they could have been a little annoying, but you didn't have to do that. We're not killing you for the pleasure of it, we're doing it because it's the right thing to do."

SOL: PROTEAN ABYSS

ALEX: DESCENDANT OF TIME​

Laura jerked back, a look of horror on her face. And something in her eyes shone and blinked away, almost as if her shock was enough to jar something out.

"What… How could you two… No, NO! It's impossible! You haven't killed the kids for their orbs! You haven't covered yourselves in enough blood to drown a town! You are nothing more than two soft-hearted, weak fools that will die out there!" Her eyes shone with craziness, her face turning ugly. A phantom of purple energy manifested around her, something that looked big, unformed, and, more importantly, with two big scissors in her hands.

"You're right. We didn't kill those kids because we chose to fight demons, not become them. So come on! We'll show you what true strength is!" Sol called, feeling the familiar heat of anger creeping behind his eyes.

"Also, differently from our group, we fight together." With a wink, a silver aura shone around him for a moment.

Before lighting up around Sol, the Haste took effect. "Go get her."

"Right." Sol swapped out Gevauden for Vendetta and lunged at Laura. He began with an overhead swing which she attempted to block. Her now giant shears caught the sword, but the damage was done. When the shears closed, the downward swing was driven and focused into one of the blades, gouging into it deeply. She attempted to open the shears again and make space, but Sol twisted Vendetta and spun her around.

The two locked eyes briefly, and Sol realized how different they were from before, but he was more focused on ending this battle now.

"Alex!" He called out.

"Tar Beam!" The giant beam that he had used against Callum shot from his umbrella, passing a hairsbreadth from Sol before slamming against Laura like a speeding truck. She was unbalanced, and resisting it in her state was impossible, which explained why she was sent flying away from Sol, one arm bent in a way that wasn't normal… or pleasant.

She crashed against a wall, collapsed to the floor, and struggled to rise. "Not yet, I can't lose now. Not yet!" She managed to rise to her feet, but it was too late. Sol had cleared the distance within a few seconds and swung down. This time, she couldn't raise her shears fast enough, and Vendetta met no resistance. The giant blade bit into the floor, and Laura's body fell backward in two halves.

**************************

Lusachia had witnessed the end of one of its unwitting agents. It felt the phantom pain as her body suffered and died. However, that was not the cause of its anger. No, it was the interlopers, the two, that seemed to have removed its 'gift' from their souls. Oh, it knew very well what had occurred. It remembered that sensation, the loss of connection between itself and the shards hidden within its gifts.

The fact that the two managed to discover the shards and remove them without suffering much, if any, repercussions infuriated the demon. Those were the leashes it had planned to use on every human in this facsimile of hell. If they had known about the shards, then who else could have known how many of its other sacrifices had been compromised?

A sense of rage began to fill the demon. It was not an unusual feeling, but the intensity of it was. Even the very idea of two former humans having the potential for this much drove that rage into a fury the likes of which the Lusachia had never experienced. It howled in its secluded alcove, and the appropriated Qliphoth roots trembled at its fury. Such was it that flames began to pour from all but one of the Lusachia's mouths, burning away flesh and reshaping several of its mouths into a new face. Unlike the first, whose visage bore sorrow, this new one bore a furious visage that would have caused many lesser demons and even those of moderate might to tremble in fear.

It was close now… so very close…

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Zeke paused mid-strike, forcing Gabrielle to cover him in dispatching another demon. For a moment, their eyes met, and she saw in them a terrible fury that was quickly hidden.

"We must continue forward," Zeke said without emotion.

"Understood, are you…" Gabrielle began before Zeke cut her off.

"I am fine. Laura is dead." Zeke said with a tone of bizarre finality.

That brought her pause. Gabrielle never cared for the other woman's bloodlust, but she respected Laura's drive. To hear from Zeke that she had died… She shook her head, looked at her gauntlet-covered hands, and felt the claws underneath them. She owed Zeke too much. He had shown her the way forward and gave her the means through which she could survive. She would follow him to the ends of hell itself if she must.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
******************************

Alex stood there, unmoving, under the onslaught of Red Orbs that split evenly between the two of them. It was an amount that was almost mind-boggling. And yet…

"It was… so easy." With the sound of breaking glass, the spell around the room shattered, flickering gold in the air for a few moments before vanishing. "She was pretty human-looking, too. I know that we didn't have a choice. But the question I asked before still stands now: what are we becoming? Will we be able to look into a mirror and recognize ourselves after that?"

Something glimmered on the ground, where Laura's corpse was a moment before: a couple of shoes, red as blood, a heel sharp as sin and seemingly untouched by whatever ordeal the Red Eyes hybrid had faced till now.

"Maybe Devil Arms? I wonder if Rodin can rework them… Do you mind if I take them?" Alex asked Sol, closing Calcabrina and vanishing it into his inventory.

"No, go ahead," Sol answered, somewhat absent-mindedly, as his mind focused on Alex's question. "What were they becoming?"

He looked down at his hand and then at the remains of Laura before slowly pulling the limb to his chest. He was silent for several moments, his gaze locked where she once stood.

"I… I don't know. I don't think I could ever answer that question. I think, though," Sol paused, deep in thought. "I think we should see a certain devil hunter after all this and ask him. I'll foot whatever bill is needed, but I don't think we can come up with an answer to the question right now." Sol finished, his other hand moving to grasp at his left wrist.

"Yeah… Yeah. You're right. And, hey, if all else fails, I know how to make pizza from scratch. We can always use that as a bribe." Alex tried to smile at Sol, only to give him what looked like a painful grimace masquerading as a smile.

Then he looked around. "We need to find a gateway to Rodin. What do you say? We split up and search the floors that we haven't managed yet? Maybe we'll find a secret room or something."

Sol responded with a tired chuckle, "Yeah, yeah, that's a good idea." Without another word. Sol quietly walked down from the attic and began to search the labyrinthine maze of rooms for either a secret room or a portal to Gates of Hell.

After several moments, Sol drew Gevaudan and began to cut arrows into the walls for reference. In his mind, it would keep his mind off of that particular looming question. Unfortunately, the world had other ideas. As he was passing through one room, he caught movement from the corner of his eyes and turned to quickly face, only to stare into the reflection of a mirror. He was still for several seconds before letting out a bitter chuckle and removing his helmet to wipe some sweat from his brow. It was then he paid closer attention to the reflection itself and saw his face for the first time in what felt like an eternity.

When he realized how his eyes had changed, he threw the helmet at the mirror in a rage. It rolled away from the mirror, and with a tired sigh, Sol went to retrieve it. As he did so, he looked into the shards of the broken mirror, into his red eyes, and turned away. It was then that he saw something blue peeking out from behind what looked to be either an armoire. Before he moved it aside, Sol noted a series of burn marks that were present only on it and nowhere else in the room. There on the wall was the familiar sign of a Secret Room.

Sol closed his eyes before turning his heel and backtracking to Alex while singing under his breath.

"I whittle on my brittle branch of anger. I carve the pointless to the sharpest rage. The Fool forever plays the actor. Another prisoner trapped upon the stage."

In the meantime, Alex was holding the two shoes with the tip of his fingers, making them dangle while he looked at them. Sharp heels, better than a mortal blade, he'd bet. The red was both too vivid and too dark. Very similar to blood. And, strangely, they looked to be big enough for him to use. If his hunch was correct, these were a Devil Arm for sure. Of course, the power that he could perceive emanating from them was a very big hint, too.

And yet, the power inside felt almost… Dormant. As if it wasn't awakened.

"I would try them, to be honest..." Alex muttered to himself before storing them in his inventory. "But I'm not that stupid. I really hope that Rodin can explain what these are. And maybe alter them a bit: I'm not sure that a pair of 'fuck-me' shoes is my style."

Alex chuckled at that before going back down towards the hallway where Sol had disappeared. Seeing the signs on the walls, he turned in the direction Sol hadn't gone and started searching the rooms.

**************************

"Hey, what's this marking?" Arthur heard someone ask while he watched the doors. His eyes had never left them since the two others left to… to go after that psycho. He had to drag his eyes away from the door to see what was up.

Maxwell or really just Max, a friend of his, was looking at a strange marking that was on the wall. They must not have seen it when they removed the furniture to barricade the doors. He quickly pushed through the crowd and grabbed Max's outreaching hand.

"What the hell, mate!?" Max shouted in alarm.

"Look, there's a weird marking on the wall, and you were going to touch it." Arthur pointed out.

"Course I was. It wasn't here before, was it? Could be, I don't know, free power or something." Max said.

"Or it could be a trap, and we all die." Arthur stressed.

"What makes you think that?" Someone from the crowd asked.

Arthur looked from Max to the rest of them before speaking. "We all saw the message on the wall, didn't we? We all saw the zombies and the, the giant flesh man thing. Who's to say that Sadie's killer didn't leave this here? That when we were all looking at the message, they didn't just come in here and set this up?"

"What should we do?" A voice asked, and it was then that it hit Arthur. They were all looking at him, to him for something. For an answer.

He pointed to the area where the two other men, Sol and Alex if he remembered correctly, had come from originally.

"It's still light out, yeah? And the zombies are gone, right? We'll… we'll start moving into that hallway and the area past that." He paused and looked at the door. "If we hear anything from either here or the outside, we move back into the other area. And if that murderer, uh fuck it, Jack the Ripper wannabe comes knocking, we leg it up the sewer entrance they talked about."

The crowd was focused solely on him at this point, and they seemed to be agreeing with him. He felt Max tap his shoulder.

"Hey Arthur, you think there'll be a pub up there if we have to run for it?"

It was at that moment Arthur began to realize why Sol had been so annoyed.

*********************************

Alex had to check five rooms before he found one that was completely empty of anything, including furniture, but with a single, big, red, glowing circle in the exact center.

"That feels almost staged. But it's a good thing that I found the Gates of Hell." With a smile, he marked the door and the wall around it before turning on his steps and walking backward, leaving a continuous line on the wall with Calcabrina.

That way, it would be easy to find the place once again, as soon as he found Sol, anyway.

He did have the temptation to enter and ask about the shoes, but he didn't want to leave Sol alone more than was strictly necessary.

Codependent? Maybe a little. Did he care? Nope.

Now humming, Sol walked back towards the attic before he heard the subtle noise of something cutting into the walls. Approaching it carefully, his mind began to think of three distinct possibilities. The first was that it could have been Alex, the second was that it could have been a demon and the third… He really hoped it wasn't a Red Eye.

He walked through several rooms and halls, following the noise until it grew loud enough. Peeking around a corner…

"Alex?" He asked cautiously.

"Oh, hey, Sol." Alex waved at him, sheathing Calcabrina back. "Sorry for the sound. I was marking the way to the Gates of Hell. It's at the end of this line." And he gestured at the long scratch in the wall. "In an empty room. There's only the portal for the bar there."

"Did you find something?" He turned his attention back to his friend. The weapon vanished into his inventory, expression curious.

Sol nodded before gesturing behind him.

"Yeah, a little ways back, I found this burned armoire. There was a seal for a secret room behind it." Sol said, trailing off slightly.

"I wouldn't have known about it if I didn't shatter a mirror that propped up against a wall by it, so that's probably seven years worth of bad luck coming my way." He said lamely. It was plain as day to tell that he was still bothered by the earlier events, and the slight pause between his statements only added to that.

"Considering our situation…" Alex started, smirking slightly, "I'm pretty sure that the seven years are the one we are living now, just concentrated all together." Then he dropped his smirk and turned towards the room where Sol had found the secret room.

"So, what do you want to do?"

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This... should have been released on Sunday. I'll be honest: It was a busy weekend, and I dropped the ball for Yuki and all of you readers. For that, I am deeply sorry. I will try to get the next chapter out this evening to keep everything on track and not throw off the schedule.

I hope you all enjoy.

 

[Atma]

Sol gave a hollow laugh at Alex's remark before nodding his head. "Well, I say we hit up the secret room and maximize our red orb count first, then splurge, I guess. I don't know about you, but I have this feeling that something is coming. You know?"

Alex shuddered. "Yeah. I mean, we defeated half of the Red Eyes already. Only three remaining, plus the final boss. It feels a lot like we're approaching the endgame of this place."

Then he deflated. "And the more we move towards the end, the more worried and unsure I become. I know that I put up a lot of bravado, but I'm terrified."

Alex almost said something before shaking his head and then nodding seriously. It was time to gain some more power. For the sake of their own future, the future of the others trapped with them, and to obliterate that demon that had dragged the two of them here.

The two walked quietly through the maze and into the room Sol had talked about. He pointedly, not looking at the shattered mirror on the floor, and instead gestured to the wall and armoire. "And here she is." Sol began, gesturing to the secret room glyph. "You ready?"

"Why, do I have the luxury of not being ready?" Alex snarked good-naturedly before nodding and gesturing at Sol to trigger the Room. The more time they spent in front of it, the worse the anxiety would be.

Sol truly smiled at that before touching the glyph. The room vanished in a flash of smoke and heat, only to be replaced by a hellish sight. The two were still inside the house, but the room was ablaze in flame, with a pool of blood in the center. There wasn't much to identify where the blood had come from, save for a scrap of material that was impossible to tell whether it was red or had been dyed red from the blood it lay in.

From the blood and flames, several figures dragged themselves into sight. Skeletons locked in animated gibbets radiating an unnatural heat. Some bore blades, others bladed shields, and few had no weapons. However, their intent was clear, and as one, they attacked.

"Finis! Watch the shields! They can be thrown!" Sol shouted above the blaze.

"Why the fuck are flaming skeletons? Sing, Seraphim!" The staff in Alex's hands shivered before a wall of sound slammed against everyone around him. Some of the flames were whisked out before reigniting.

The shields that the Finis had thrown - following what Sol had said - slammed against the sound and clattered on the ground before Alex twirled his staff in his hands, and a sphere of light appeared above it, immediately starting to shoot lances of sound towards the enemies.

"Go in with melee. I'll support you from behind. Better be careful in these places."

"Right!" Sol shouted, drawing Vendetta. Using Vendetta against demons from Dumary felt right, and the added weight would help cut through the gibbets more easily. The heavy blade struck the nearest, carving deeply through metal and bone before sending it flying back into the flame, where it exploded into a small amount of red orbs.

"Damn! Alright! They're not as durable as they look! Take them out quickly!" Sol shouted over the growing blaze before cutting down another Mortfinis.

"Fine by me!" Alex growled before Seraphim started shooting several lances of sound, along with the Choir hovering above him. Every lance destroyed one of the weaker Finis. Two were enough for the medium one and three for the strongest ones. Not that he used only those.

Magical bullets soon were raining all around the room, stopping the various demons from hitting Sol any time one went near him.

And yet, they didn't stop coming. They returned from the flames, one after another, grasping hands and rusted weapons, ready to hack and slash the two to pieces. An unending horde that looked more like something from a vicious nightmare than the reality they were right now.

Sol began to notice something truly wrong about the room. The flames had already made the place hot as hell, but the fire seemed to be growing in intensity each time another Mortfinis was cut down.

"Come on, why the hell won't you guys quit?" Sol asked aloud as Vendetta carved through another demon, only this time, he didn't see any red orbs manifest from its death. His brief moment of shock was interrupted as he was forced to defend himself again from another mortfinis. However, he began to realize something, the mortfinis were just a distraction, a deadly one, but a distraction nonetheless.

"They're a distraction, they're a distraction. There's something else we need to do here!!!" Sol roared.

"They aren't dropping any Orb, either!" It was a minor detail, but the moment Sol shouted that they were a distraction, Alex's mind went into overdrive, letting him notice the absence of the orbs.

Then, from his place in the back, he scanned the room, trusting Sol to keep the Finis at bay. At least for a little bit.

The saying about the quality of quantity is one everyone has heard. Still, it was an unending horde; the room was sweltering, and even the blood splatters on the ground had started to smoke and dry out.

If their clothes weren't made from the Divinity statue, they would have probably caught on fire. It was just an idle thought, the one that passed through Alex's head, but it made him look down, suddenly remembering a detail.

The piece of cloth in the middle of the biggest puddle of blood. It was still there. No matter how many Finis passed over it to reach the duo. It was still there.

"Sol! The cloth!" Alex shouted.

Sol turned to the center and, after several seconds, made an attempt to grab the red cloth. A mortfinis struck where his hand would have been, but using Time Step, Sol managed to dodge in time before retaliating, the strike carving through the Mortfinis's neck, guard, and vertebrae. On his second attempt, he managed to drag the cloth from the pool of blood before balling it in his palm.

Looking towards Alex, he asked, "What should I do with it!?"

Alex only had the time to open his mouth before the blast of wind exploded from Sol's hand, forcing them to close their eyes as ash, dust, and dirt were sent flying around them. When they managed to recover their sight, the place was empty. Empty and without the flames of before, only the aftermath: burnt furniture, soot-streaked floors, broken windows… and a doorway to the garden outside.

"Oh, that works," Sol said lamely before tying the cloth around his gauntlet and getting himself ready. "Shall we see what's outside?"

"If this is going to continue like this, nothing good, I'd wager." Alex sighed before dismissing the Choir and stowing Seraphim away. Calcabrina was in his hands a moment later. "Let's go."

Sol walked out first. Past the doorway, the air was cool, and the midnight sky was inviting. The only illumination came from the flames of the burning mansion. Said illumination revealed how expansive the front part of the property was, more than either Sol or Alex could have known. In the visible area, however, was a beautifully made wrought iron bench, atop of which lay something which reflected the light of the fire.

Sol looked at the red cloth on his arm and gestured to the bench. "I think that's where we need to go."

"That's…" Alex didn't say anything more than that, just falling into a charged silence, looking at the bright leather-bound book on the bench.

The red cloth around Sol's arm unwound itself and floated to the book. When it reached the bench, both it and the book disappeared, leaving in its place an image of a woman and a young boy sitting together and reading.

Sol looked back to the burning and then back to the bench. "Trauma, this was his trauma. What he wanted to see when he returned…" Sol said, trailing off.

"A place where his mother was still alive and had more time with him," Alex concluded, taking a deep, deep breath before slowly exhaling through his nose.

"This is all fucked up."

And that was when the air went red with a web of strings.

Three Mortfinis loomed from the barrier, physically blocking the path between the two and the phantoms.

"Guess you guys don't know when to quit, huh? Fine, we'll make this quick!" Sol said before charging the three demons.

Alex was way more laconic in his answer, although his movements were rather more vitriolic. "Fuck off."

He Blinked forward and slashed with Calcabrina, twisting on himself, aiming to bisect all three of the demons in a single move.

As the barrier broke down, Sol turned to Alex, "Well, I guess that means you're up to at least three; I wasn't really keeping count in the last room."

Turning back to the bench, Sol watched the two phantoms read, a smile on each of their faces. He didn't know how long he stood there. However, the phantoms eventually finished and closed the book, fading from existence. Sol approached cautiously and lifted the book from the bench. There was a noise of howling wind, and the outside facade faded back into the room they were in before, only this time, there was more fire damage than before, and the book, now bound in red leather, rested in Sol's hand.

"One last gift, I think," Alex murmured softly before looking at Sol. "Keep it. We'll… try to give it to Vergil if or when we meet him. You know, assuming he's not going to skewer us the moment he sees us, anyway."

Then, he shrugged and turned towards the exit of the room. "Well? Is that all?"

"I guess so…" Sol said before placing the book in his inventory. Turning to Alex, he asked. "You said you found the Gates of Hell, right? Might as well stop there first before the statue."

However, Sol noticed that by his was another blue fragment. "Last one I needed. You get the next reward, Alex," Sol said before picking up the fragment. As he did, he began to think of the fragments he had collected fitting together to make a perfect blue orb, and as he did, he began to feel that sense of vitality fill him once again.

"Okay, let's go see Rodin." Sol finished.

Alex smiled and gave him a thumbs up before the room vanished around them, and they found themselves in front of the shattered mirror, the spiderweb of runes now white and lifeless.

"Ok, so. Rodin is at the end of this long scratch on the wall here." He pointed at the wall right out of the room. "We just need to follow it until we reach a room without anything inside. I don't know why, but it's just… like that. So."

He shrugged. "The faster we go, the better, no?" And he smiled again.

So, the two of them started walking towards the Gates of Hell. The bar, naturally, hadn't changed since the two were last there, and Sol made no attempt at waiting for what he was looking for.

"Gin and Tonic with your best Gin. I'm feeling that I really need it right now."

Rodin only quirked an eyebrow but wordlessly took out two bottles and a tall glass. Mere instants later, Sol had in front of him a Gin and Tonic. Alex, instead, just languidly sat on the stool, leaning forward.

"Tequila Sunrise. Also, I have something that may be interesting." And, with a flick of his wrist, a pair of shoes appeared in his hands. "I found these after killing one of the Red Eyes summoned. Can you tell me what they are?" And, carefully so as not to put anything on the counter, he passed them to Rodin, who took them and started humming.

"Devil Arms. But only half." He declared before seeing both of the guys' unsure gazes. So, he explained.

"These…" He raised the pair of heels. "Are part of a set called the Laughing Kookaburra and the Butcher Bird. Legend goes that they were born from a couple of demons that were originally lovers and turned enemies. They are excellent when fighting against each other, but if used together… Well, they are legendary for a reason. It is said that the user will turn into a dervish of pure destruction that controls winds on the battlefield."

"That's quite the story, sir, but I guess we only found that part of the set with the last Red Eye." Sol said, slightly unsure.

"When one appears, the other is never too far." And, with that last cryptic statement, he gave back the pair of shoes and the drink to Alex before giving him his last piece.

"And if you want them to fit you, it will cost you 75.000 Red Orbs. These aren't like your first weapons."

Sol took another sip of his drink before looking at Alex and asking, "You're good for that price?"

"I mean, it's not exactly peanuts, but I should have…" Rodin tsked, attracting the attention of both of them.

"Seventy-Five each."

Silence.

"Well, powerful weapons demand a powerful price, I guess." Sol said with a chuckle before looking at his drink. The laugh had died down, and he looked past Rodin.

"I… I have a question, sir, and I figured that being where you are and doing what you do, you'd have an answer to it." Sol began before rubbing his face, unconsciously shifting his hand so that the claws would scratch his eyes.

"How do people handle 'it'? Handle, I don't know, taking a life of something that looks so similar to them? I mean, I can rationalize the killing of demons. I'm rationalizing it as a matter of survival, where you keep getting stronger and protect what you've got. But people…" Sol shuddered before killing his drink.

"The first man I killed, I cut him right down the middle, didn't even see me coming. Lost my arm shortly after that too… I rationalized that one too. Fucker was a nazi, and I firmly believe that those bastards should have been kicked so far down into the earth that even after a millennium, they'd still remained buried. But those last two Red Eyes were once like us, fully human. Stevens and Goode, too, were also just like us humans. What's… What's that point? What's that line in the sand that separates man from monster? I just want to know."

"Kid, you came to the wrong place and the wrong man for that kind of question." Rodin's answer was merciless. "Each and every one of you will react differently from the other. You need to find out what works for you and then do it. Nothing less."

He leaned back, resting against the counter behind him. "It's going to hurt like a motherfucker, and it's not going to be easy. But, if you don't want to turn into a monster or put your gun to your head and pull the trigger, you'll have to find a way."

"Find out what works, huh? That, that could be something." Sol said quietly, his voice not sure of the truth of his own words.

"It's either that or becoming monsters. Or dead. I don't think we have a lot of choice, really." Alex pointed out before he shotgunned his drink in a single gulp.

"Can you give me an Alexander?" He asked Rodin, and moments later, he was granted his request. He then started sipping it way more slowly.

"Of all possible things, I don't think that alcohol is going to be a good idea. Nor smoking. Or doing drugs." Alex kept musing, Rodin smirking at the last suggestion.

"Not that those work on demons."

Sol looked at his drink before asking a question. "What do you have that works on demons?"

Alex slapped his hand on Sol's mouth before he could say anything more. "Whatever you have that works on demons, he won't be taking them." Then, he turned towards Sol.

"No drugs. Alcohol is already pushing it." It was clear from his expression that Alex was incredibly serious.

Sol raised a finger before slowly lowering it and nodding his head in agreement.

Alex, with a slow movement, removed his hand from his friend's mouth before grabbing the glass and draining what had remained inside. Then, he nodded to himself.

"Thank you, Rodin. We'll have to go. We have a class of kids to babysit. hope we'll see you soon - with the other part of the Devil Arm." That said, he got up and started walking back toward the portal.

"Yeah, we'll be seeing you," Sol said as well before stepping through the portal.

When Sol stepped out back into the Sparda mansion, he looked at Alex before saying. "Finding something, that's something, isn't it?"

"That actually sounds a lot like the advice that my psychologist gave me before. Well, it was in the context of studying, but it works, too." Alex shrugged before pointing down the hallway. "Shall we? The kids are waiting."

********************************************************

The duo returned to the room with the others to find the air thick with enough anxiety, fear, and tension that they could have cut it with a knife.

"Ok, answer in order: Who died, what happened, and did any of you do something that I or Sol would consider stupid?" And, although his tone sounded pretty much exasperated, Alex was already on edge and ready to act.

However, the person that Sol considered to be the current bane of his existence pushed his way through the crowd.

"Uhhh, no, well, almost. But, we're all accounted for. Uh, Max, though, almost touched a creepy symbol thing on the wall a while ago. I told him off of touching it, and we were considering moving back the way you came if some more time passed."

Sol quirked a brow. "Huh, that's some pretty good thinking, actually. Where'd you develop common sense?" Sol asked with a sardonic chuckle.

Arthur grimaced before responding. "Well, it was creepy, and no one else was coming through the doors. It could have been that killer's weird teleport trap thingy or a door to some greater demon dimension. Or, or even like some weird way of sealing away demons or something? Except instead like something from Gran's leftover jewels or that demented doll you'd find in your relative's attic, a wall."

Alex was already massaging his temples, having already seen the part of the wall they were talking about.

"Ok, you did good. You did more than good. In fact, THAT symbol on the wall…" He pointed at the runes. "Is a portal to a room where monsters appear and try to kill you. Or is a puzzle. Or a challenge. Basically, it's like a secret bonus room in a video game. Dangerous if one is not prepared."

That said, he strode forward and started analyzing the symbol. His new knowledge was helpful, but he still didn't know what the symbol truly meant.

"So, we'll take care of it from here." Sol began before really looking at the crowd. Something slowly began to click in his mind, but he couldn't quite understand it. He shook his head and looked at the symbol on the wall.

"Yep. Don't stay too close, though." The people inside the room were both scared, agitated, and excited. The last part was only a little, but it was… understandable. This whole situation has caused the same feelings in Sol and Alex, after all.

"We don't really know what the range of these things is, so you need to take a few steps backward…" And, in perfect Murphy fashion, someone tripped on someone else, who then fell forward and caused a chain reaction.

That ended with Arthur being thrown forward against Alex, who grabbed him by reflex, but also took two steps back as Arthur was, in fact, taller than Alex by at least two inches, making him hit Sol. Who put his hands forward to avoid falling, completely by instinct. And, while he was bracing himself for it, he noticed that he was going to land straight on the symbol.

"Fuck."

The wall disappeared, and in its place, there was a moderately large stone room. In the center was a large dais, and opposite it was a cut in the wall reminiscent of a door. The surrounding walls were nearly bare, save for thin strips of mosaic design running along the midline of each wall.

"Wha… what happened!?" Sol asked hurriedly as he got up and looked around the room.

Alex grumbled before grabbing Arthur by the neck of his shirt and dragging him upwards. "Someone tripped. And now we have him to keep alive."

Hearing that, the boy gulped a little, suddenly looking a little bit scared.

"Calm down. I'm not angry with you. It was inevitable that something like that would happen, really." Alex shook his head and let the college kid go before looking around.

"So, you have any idea of where we are?" His question was said to the air but was pretty clearly aimed at Sol.

Sol looked around for a few moments. He was honestly at a loss. Stone puzzle rooms, while not exactly super prevalent, made an appearance at least once per game, so pinning it down that way was not an option. He couldn't see any way to force the obviously 'notdoor' door to open physically. He groaned before saying, "Fantastic, a puzzle room… well, at least we probably won't have to deal with platforming the platforms of doom."

Sol paused for a moment before hissing out, "Fuck!" So lost was he in his moment of self-reflection that he braced himself against the dais, specifically the flat one. Sol felt something shift underneath his hand and almost fell over due to the change in balance. He looked down and realized that the dais wasn't merely a stone decoration but a sliding puzzle. "So the Salazar family crest puzzle, where are the armaduras?" Sol questioned jokingly.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, but if you know what it is, go for it. I'll keep an eye on Unlucky McGee here." And Alex tossed a thumb towards Arthur, who, now that the initial scare was done was starting to look around curiously.

Arthur looked at Alex with an annoyed look. "It wasn't my fault! Someone tripped me over!"

Sol, while looking at the dais, waved him off. "You kept everyone alive so far, so you get a huge pass."

It had taken him a few moments, but he had managed to slide the pieces into a semi-coherent structure. It really was turning out to be a crest of some sort, but there was a problem. There was one piece missing. The dais puzzle was a set in a 3 square and had a total of nine pieces; however, only eight were present. There was a centerpiece missing.

"Hey Alex, I have a question?" Sol began motioning Alex over to the dais. "If this is Sparda's house and if he had a personal crest or banner or something like that, what would you consider would make the most sense for a centerpiece? I was thinking of a bug, all things considered, but I'm not sure."

"I'm not exactly an expert, but I would guess either his sword or… I dunno, his horns?" Alex shrugged before looking around. "I honestly have no idea."

"Hmmm… This is like a bizarre escape room." Sol mused while still looking at the puzzle, only to be distracted by the sound of something falling. Looking up, he saw that Arthur was by one of the walls and that by his hand, a small square tile had fallen to the floor. Sol facepalmed.

"What!? What did I do!?" Arthur asked in a scared voice.

"Just proved how bad I am at certain puzzles." Sol said before picking up the piece. The tile had a bizarre symbol on it that felt wrong somehow. Tapping it, he looked to Arthur. "Search this wall; take any symbol that has either a sword or horns, big horns that arch backward before sweeping to the front."

He turned to Alex. "I think we may be able to find our missing piece."

"Oh?" He was already searching around the room, trying to see if there was any particular tile with the image that Sol had asked for. The whole thing was made more difficult by the fact that the room wasn't exactly well lit and the tiles were small enough, or the images dark enough not to be easily seen.

"Do tell."

"The tile can come off the walls. So that's where our missing piece should be." Sol responded before looking at a wall and beginning to search it. "Sword or horns, come on, give me one or both."

In the end, after fifteen more minutes of searching, it was Arthur who found the missing tile. It looked like two curved horns pointed forward, black and draconic.

"That should be it." Sol said before taking the tile and placing it on the dais. "One reward and red orb cache coming up." He said triumphantly before the stone wall slid away… only to reveal another room designed like a library.

"Oh…" Was all Sol said as he looked at what he guessed was the next puzzle.

"And Murphy rears his ugly head…" Alex hummed his lips downturned. "Something's telling me that this is not going to be the last puzzle, either. Let's see what we are working with, ok?" And he strode inside, ready to destroy any monster that could appear and attack him.

Nothing did. But it could have.

Instead, the room looked like a small and personal library. There was nothing in the center, but each wall was lined with bookshelves and a ladder on three of them. On the opposite side of the entrance was a wall with five recesses. Above which, was a series of symbols depicting the scene of a great battle and tower in the far distance.

"So… is this where Vergil got his bookworm-isms from?" Sol asked in a cheeky tone.

"Could be. Judging by the shape and size of those holes, we need to find the right books. Now, what the right books are, it's another matter entirely." Alex mused, pointing at the symbols above them.

"Probably some historical text about that specific battle. Let's hope these books have pictures in them because I have no idea which one." Then, Alex went directly to the bookshelves and started searching through them.

"Arthur, go and check if there are any hints on the wall. Don't worry if monsters appear, just run away shrieking, and we'll take care of it."

Arthur just shook his head and began to look at the wall while Sol turned to the wall closest to him to look at the books. After several seconds, Arthur was heard speaking.

"Uhhh, I don't want to be stupid, but uh, doesn't this look like the tower thing that cropped up a few years ago?" He asked while pointing to the tower depicted in the relief.

"What do you mean?" Sol asked in a confused tone.

"What!? How do you all not know about it, but I do? Look, back in the nineties, there was this huge tower that just showed one day, right? Some people called it Babel, Nimrod's overcompensation, The Uncrowned Tower of London, you get it? Lots of people died, and authorities called it some sort of terrorist attack. They never found out who did it, but there's still a worldwide manhunt for the bastard. Anyway, we were taught about this in world history, pictures and all. And that," Arthur says while pointing at the relief, "Looks just like that giant tower. It's creepy how similar it looks, innit?"

Alex looked at the image and blinked.

Then, he squinted and came closer, almost touching the stone with his nose. Before taking a step back and blinking back. "Uh. Would you look at that? The Temen-Ni-Gru. I think, at least." He half turned towards Sol before pointing at the bas-relief. "That's the Temen-Ni-Gru, right? I'm not imagining it?"

"What's a Temen-Ni-Gru?" Arthur's puzzled face was all scrunched in concentration as he tried to pronounce the words correctly.

Alex vaguely turned towards him. "A demonic tower that a clown had tried to use to turn into a demon by opening the doors to hell. More or less. Not important right now."

"Maybe it is important. There are five slots on the wall and books all around us. Maybe we have to find the books that discuss its history?" Sol asked.

"Well, yes, it's what I had suggested at the start. But which one is the problem." Alex nodded at Sol before returning to the bookshelf. Only to be stopped by Arthur's voice again.

"There are some numbers here. They don't look like any date I have ever seen, though. And it even has some letters..." Alex stopped all of a sudden and checked one book at random. Sure enough, there was a slip of paper in the inner dust cover that held an alphanumeric code on it.

"Dewey decimal system. Like a library. Read the code, and we need to find the book with it."

The search was not exactly short at first, but it changed when they chanced upon a certain book. There was no title on the front of the spine, but the body and binding were clearly older than its fellows yet very well maintained. The only identification on it was a number on it reading 901. However, the real tell of the book was that upon opening it, the words written inside were something that none of the three had ever seen before.

"What the… Ok, I think I get the… writing? I think. It's more of a feeling of knowledge than a real being able to read it, but it's…" Alex's voice slowly fell into silence before turning and marching to the wall. Finding the opening with the 901 number on it, he tried to slot the book inside it.

Something clicked.

A strong light erupted from the book's spine before dying down to a gentle glow. "Demon books. Of course."

"They won't attack us, will they?" Arthur asked quietly.

"Only if you are vulnerable to headaches." Alex slowly massaged his temples before pointing at the glowing book. "They are written in some sort of demon language. Which, if I'm right, it's Enochian. Which is also the language of angels."

"Four remaining then. Well, this should be easy," Sol said before turning to the spot where the book was, only to frown. Where books 900-905 should have been, there were other books with very different numbers.

"Of course, it isn't. Why should it ever be the case." Sol's shoulders dropped, "Right, four books shouldn't be that hard to find." Sol finished with a sigh.

Arthur, who turned to look as well, spotted a similar binding on the lowest shelf of the wall to the left of the relief. Pulling it, he saw that it read 905. He quickly rushed past Alex and fumbled the book into its slot before rubbing his hands against his pants in an attempt to get an invisible residue off his hands.

"That's another one, yeah? So three more?"

Alex blinked. He has been doing a lot of that lately. "Yes. But it's not going to bite you, you know? Or consume you." Still, he patted his head while he passed, going to search for the remaining three, making Arthur put a hand on his head in bafflement.

"Come on, let's find the last three. For you, Time is not going to stop, you know?! Let's move!"

"Wait, what do you mean 'for me'???" Arthur's shrill shout was answered only by a low, ominous laugh. It didn't help him in any way.

Sol gave a low chuckle before he felt the effects of Alex's time spell before grabbing one of the ladders and looking for any of the books. Luck seemed to be on his side as his hand brushed against another 900 series of books above the entrance of the room. Moving back down the ladder, he slotted it into the relief.

"900, that means two left."

"902 here. And I think.. Arthur, the one with the red cover." Arthur shakily grabbed the book and nodded.

Thus, the puzzle was done. And, with a flash of light, the wall vanished from their sight, showing them a short hallway to a third room.

It was a perfectly circular room, with a wall on the other side of the door and a single bas-relief of a sword on it. Underneath, a series of words.

"I am the Banisher of Light,
I'm the Champion of Fright
I'm the Power of Spite
I'm the Spreader of Blight.
Who am I?"

"A riddle. I… didn't expect this." Alex hummed, looking at the words on the wall. "It doesn't look like something a demon would do."

Sol looked at it before pacing. "Of course, it's a riddle. Uhhhh, well, banisher of light and champion of fright can be a literal thing. So could blight but spite? Is it Darkness?" Sol asked in an unsure tone.

"I mean, it would fit the whole… Halloween thing that it had going." Alex waved his hands at the wall, trying to see if there was something that they were missing. "But why a riddle?"

"To stump people like me who are terrible at riddles?" Sol asked while staring at the relief. He thought that maybe something on the relief itself could answer the riddle. But outside of the image of the longsword, he couldn't think of…

Sol turned to Alex, asking, "Could it be the name of a sword? Like a named sword?"

Alex looked at the riddle once more before cocking his head to the side. "I mean… maybe? Like, Sparda or… Or Excalib-no, that's not a demonic sword. Do you know any?"

"Excalibur may not be demonic, but you may be on the right track. Uh, Clarent?" Sol asked the relief.

Nothing happened.

"Well, that didn't work." Sol muttered with an annoyed tone.

"Uhh… Aerondight... What's the name of Siegfri-Balmung?" Alex tried, but nothing happened. The wall stayed stubbornly silent. And, to add injury to insult, the door behind them vanished into nothingness, replaced by only a blank wall.

"You guys do have an answer to this, right?" Arthur asked fearfully.

"I… I think. I'm probably wrong, but that Spite part is bothering me. I feel like that's where we're missing it." Sol responded.

"I mean, if it's not the name of a sword, what else could it be? It's not like it wants us to list every kind of myth or character that uses a sword! That would be ridiculous!" Alex ranted for a moment before stopping and taking a deep breath.

"Ok, getting angry doesn't help. What could be the answer? If it's not the name of a sword, what could it be?"

Sol thought about the potential answer. If it was Darkness, then the door would have opened, but he would bet that the Spite part was the part that killed that answer. "Banisher of Light, Champion of Fright, Power of Spite, and Spreader of Blight. Hmmm could it…?"

"Is the answer, Evil?" Sol asked aloud.

It was not the answer.

Alex kicked the wall where the door had been a moment before. It didn't do anything, but it helped him release stress.

Timidly, Arthur raised a hand, looking incredibly out of place. "Maybe it's not something specific? I mean, the image on the wall is a long sword. Also called a Knight Sword. So, if it's a figure of myth, it should be something like a dark knight or something like that?"

After he was done speaking, the wall started shining and sinking into the ground.

Sol opened his mouth, and his face switched through several emotions rapidly before settling on barely restrained fury.

"Arthur, kudos to you. When we're out of here, I'm going to try to kick my own ass for not seeing that."

"Thanks?" Arthur answered, unsure of what to say, before Alex strode forward and waited for the wall to finish sinking down.

Behind it, a three-meter-tall statue of a knight made of dark metal gleamed in the low lights. Long sword in one hand, kite shield in the other, it was kneeling on one knee as if it was in front of a lord. Behind it, was a pedestal with a full purple orb and a bookshelf with several books on it.

"Well, that's… strange." Alex's comment lasted until he looked the knight statue up and down a couple of times. Then, he turned towards Sol with a flat expression on his face. "How much do you want to bet that this thing is going to come alive as soon as we step beyond the place where the wall was?"

"Sucker's bet." Sol said before looking at the statue and choosing to draw Vendetta before looking at Arthur. "Arthur, enter the room behind us but stay as far away as possible. If that door closes, we don't need you trapped in here for… well, we don't actually know, but better play it safe." Sol finished before slowly entering the room.

As the three entered the room, the statue remained still for several moments until it shifted forward. Rolling its shoulders, the statue began to move into a standing position, taking up its arms in the process.

Standing before the three, the demonic statue saluted the party and readied itself.

CEIL: THE BLACKENED KNIGHT​

"What the hell was that!? This thing has a name!?" Arthur asked as he pressed himself against the wall.

Sol tossed him Nymphaeum before saying, "Yes, yes. Just keep out of range and keep firing."

"Obviously, this was going to happen. And it's a Boss, too." Alex muttered, before skipping backward and slashing with Seraphim, lances of sounds slamming against the shield that was blocking their shots.

"Choir!" The sphere of light zipped up, while Alex renewed his assault.

The sound waves pushed the knight back, but the sphere struck the shield, burning and partially melting part of the center. The knight looked at the damage briefly before letting out an angered noise.

Sol charged forward, blade high, and attempted to strike down. The knight flipped its sword down, parrying the blow and driving Vendetta into the ground. Ceil capitalized on Sol's staggered state from the parry by twisting the sword and swinging it towards Sol's chest. Using Time Step, Sol managed to barely dodge before a blast struck the knight in the head. It slowly turned to face Arthur, who, while trembling, had the demon gun raised.

Alex, in the meantime, decided to keep up his bombardment: he was shooting so fast that one could think that he was Hasted.

Correction: He was hasted, if the silver aura around him was any indication. And it was still not enough to damage the Knight meaningfully.

However, the shield was warping under the barrage of magic as Ceil began to close in on Arthur until, eventually, something cracked. Part of the shield broke just enough that the next shot to hit the area sent a shard into the knight. It recoiled briefly, grunted, and tossed the battered shield away before pulling the shard from its body.

"SHIELDS… EXPENDABLE… KNIGHTS… ARE… NOT" A rumbling voice emanated from the knight.

"Really?" Alex snarked before Seraphim was back inside his storage. Calcabrina was in his hands, umbrella open and charging. "Well, neither are we!"

The shout was accompanied by a bullet-tinted silver-black, which Ceil tried to avoid. Not managing it, his movements suddenly slowed down while Calcabrina's canopy started shining with charged power. "Sol, keep him busy!"

Sol wordlessly nodded and lunged forward, swinging Vendetta low. The blade went unopposed this time, smashing into Ciel's shin. The metal creaked and bent inwards, and with a low, distorted, and slowed cry, Ciel began to react. It tried to swing across its field of vision only to stop as Arthur fired, momentarily blinding the demon.

A moment later, with Ceil still reeling from the sudden hit in the face, Alex shot Ceil with Calcabrina at its center of mass, pushing the dark knight backward and making the armor creak, crack, and bend inward.

Before the attack finished landing, Ceil threw itself into a roll, the effect of Slow vanishing from its body, the magic having run the course. And now, it had a straight shot to Alex. Well, if Sol wasn't there, anyway.

Sol, seeing the attack, intercepted in a way he felt appropriate.

"Abyssal Punch!!!" Sol roared as the demonic punch created a large dent in the side of the demonic knight's face. The force of the blow interrupted its momentum, sending the demon across the room. But that still wasn't enough. As Ceil began to get up, more raspy-sounding breathing began to emanate from its body.

Then, the Dark Knight exploded in a flood of darkness so thick and black that it hid him from sight before hitting both Sol and Alex, with only Arthur saving himself by being at the very edge of the area. When the darkness vanished, the two were breathing hard, their lost energy leaving them breathing heavily.

"Fuck you." Alex was turning strangely vulgar in the way he was speaking, but with the circumstances being what they were, it was understandable.

The way he grabbed Calcabrina, the blade started shining with power before a projection of it expanded until it formed a great blade that Alex was handling as if it was without weight.

"An honorable knight… gahh! Give me a break with that cheap shot." Sol hissed, dragging Vendetta in front of him.

"Alex! Let's show this knight what honor really is!" Sol shouted.

"Good idea!" He raised the enlarged sword before he vanished from his position. A moment later, he was falling from the sky, straight towards the Knight, aiming for his head.

Sol made to aim low, swinging Vendetta at Ciel's midsection. His intent was plain, he was going to carve Ciel in two.

The Dark Knight avoided both of them with the simple tactic of taking a quick step back. Thus, Sol and Alex slammed one against the other, barely managing to avoid any kind of serious injury. Plenty of lighter ones, though.

"Oh, you're a smart one, aren't you?" The sword still in his hands, Alex shot forward and started slashing at the Knight, Blinking here and there every now and then, to try and disorient the enemy, allowing him to strike a killing blow.

Sadly, Ceil was too skilled for him to overcome with his slapdash fighting style. Thus, Alex was being kept at bay with, if not ease, at least contempt.

Sol tumbled from the blow before stumbling to his feet and launching an attack of his own. Ceil parried the strikes before batting Sol away.

Arthur could only fire at the knight as best he could. It… Didn't really do a lot.

Alex, after getting back from being tossed away from the Knight, stopped swinging at random and let his sword return to normal.

"Ok. Ok. You want to be a difficult boss? Fine by me." With Calcabrina in his hands, he started walking forward, demonic energy surrounding his body. "Let's see how you like this."

His voice, at the end, was rather distorted. And, in a flash, he had slammed the tip of his umbrella against Ceil's midsection, his entire body covered in armor. He had activated his Devil Trigger.

There was a horrendous noise as Ceil's midsection caved in from the power of Alex's last strike, which flew across the room before impacting the wall behind it. Yet it still moved, or at least tried to. It painfully wheezed as it tried to pull itself free before falling to the floor.

After that, the rest of the fight was more of a massacre than a true fight. Alex kept blinking away. The air around Ceil was filled with bubbles of stopped time, and the hits that the hybrid was managing to land were devastating, although he wasn't using the naked blade, instead preferring to hit it with the closed umbrella.

And considering that a near-missed attack cratered the stone ground, it wasn't for the Dark Knight's benefit.

After almost another minute, one more hit slammed against Ceil's sword and sent it flying backward. Four bubbles of stopped time appeared around his arms and legs, effectively making him immobile. And then Alex appeared once more in front of him, umbrella open and charging.

"Goodbye." The shot was blinding.

Once the light had died down, only the bottom part of the armor remained. Everything else was turned into fragments.

The legs stood shakily for a moment before collapsing, breaking apart, and scattering across the room. As it did so, a mass of red orbs manifested from its remains.

"Fucking A, man," Sol said breathlessly. "Gotta remember to use that in future."

"Wha… what the hell did he just do!?" Arthur asked aloud.

"Devil Trigger." Alex started explaining, bending down and grabbing the sword that had been removed from the Knight while his armor started to vanish in a flurry of black petals. "To make a long and complicated story short, think of it as my limited time transformation."

Seeing how Arthur was still skeptical, Alex sighed and shook his head. "It's my Super Saiyan form. Now, try this." And he extended the hand with the sword towards Arthur.

Arthur took the sword with an unsure hand and lifted it with surprising ease.

"Right, yeah, 'cause that makes sense," Arthur said, looking at Alex before giving a few practice swings. "This is really light. How'd this thing give you so much trouble?" Arthur asked while holding the blade. Outside Ceil's grip, the devil arm was almost a mundane-looking long sword. The key word there was almost. While its bright steel handle and leather wrappings were typical of a long sword, the jet-black blade wasn't. In spite of that, the blade still shone in the dim light with irrefutable light, seemingly at odds with the abilities of its previous wielder.

Alex frowned for a moment before tapping the hilt with a finger, a spark of demonic energy running from his hands to the blade. It lit up like a Christmas tree for a moment, dancing with red, black, blue, and white lights, before dying down once more.

"Devil Arm. Congrats, you are now in the upper echelons of potential. Also, in the upper echelons of targets, so. You know. Fifty-fifty."

"Uh… well then, uh, you better take it. You know what you're doing, right?" Arthur stammered while offering the blade handle first.

Alex looked at him and looked down at the blade before looking at Sol. Then he turned back to Arthur.

"Nah. It's yours now." He pushed the sword back towards the guy before smirking. "You see, Devil Arms are kind of sentient. If they don't like you, you're not going to be able to use them to the fullest. On the other hand, if they do like you, only a fool would try to separate them from the user. You're lucky."

"Lucky? Right yeah." Arthur said shakily as he took the sword up. "Have myself a bloody demon sword that likes me, the hell is my life becoming?" He asked, more to himself than Alex or Sol.

Sol leaned in and said. "If it helps, we crafted ours from bits and pieces of demons that we killed. So the fact that you had one drawn to you, gotta say something about who you are, right?" Sol asked to lighten Arthur's mood.

"What the hell could it see from me? I'm just an average guy, nothing special. Hell, it's a weapon, ain't it? Might as well use it." Arthur said before laying the sword across his shoulder.

"Good boy. We'll bring the class to Rodin so that you can get a sheathe or something. You'll like him, he's a demonic blacksmith. Great with weapons." The expression on Alex's face and his tone of voice didn't match. He was getting way too much glee from this whole situation. Then, a moment later, a wave of Red Orbs hit all three of them.

"That was… a good amount," Sol said as he watched his red orb count go up.

"Is that going to happen every time we kill a demon?" Arthur asked while recovering from the sensation of absorbing so many red orbs that quickly.

"Not in that amount, but yeah. Trust us; there are plenty of demons here, so spend those red orbs well and nothing with an L prefix. That's a one-way ticket to messing you up royally." Sol answered.

Alex nodded before grabbing the purple orb floating on the pedestal behind the place where the Knight was and turning towards Arthur once more.

"One last piece of advice: as you know, in the Item section of the statue, there are Blue and Purple Orbs. Buy more of them as soon as possible because they both improve your body and your magic. Knowing how to use it is another matter, but trust me: I was diabetic before this. And fat. And now…" And he gestured at himself, stretching back.

"Wow…" Arthur's eyes were slightly glazed over before the hybrid snapped him out of it by Alex tossing an arm over his shoulder and started steering him back towards the exit, a giant web of runes on the previously blank wall. "Yeah. yeah, I know. Feel free to ogle. But do it while we walk. We need to move, ok?"

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Oh, how much I wanted to post this last night. Unfortunately, my laptop decided it didn't want to connect to the internet for some bizarre reason. So, last night became Dark Sector night for me. Kinda janky game, but you can see the foundations for Warframe in it.

That being said, a lot went on in this chapter. Two secret rooms, a boss fight, a familial book, and an incomplete Devil Arm. I wonder where the other half is? Well, we'll find out soon enough. Now on Saturday into Sunday, I intend to update the enemy and shop info to keep everything as up-to-date as possible and then post the following chapter afterwards.

I hope you all enjoy and have a good time of the day.

 

[Atma]

Their return was met with a bit of shock, and Arthur got quite the sob story from several people who felt responsible for sending Arthur into what they called "The hell-looking wall that eats people."

Unfortunately, not only was this what they actually called it, but no one seemed to have broken into any of the alcohol that could have been found in the manor, meaning they came up with that name while sober.

Sol was practically groaning from how bad their name for the secret room was. Arthur was recounting the tale well enough, explaining in his own way the events that transpired within and how he got his new sword. There were some envious eyes in the crowd, but their attention on the blade was redirected when Alex and Sol discussed Rodin's Gates of Hell and that they were willing to lead the group to that location in the future.

It was almost like a guided tour as Alex and Sol led the group throughout the labyrinthine halls of the Sparda Mansion to the out-of-the-way area in which the Gates of Hell entrance manifested. While they were cautious at first, seeing Arthur follow the two in the portal galvanized the rest to follow.

As they filtered in, many began to look at the bar with little sense of awe, with one even saying, "That bar is lit!"

The sound of Sol facepalming was heard mere seconds later.

"Yeah, ok." Alex facepalmed before returning to a more normal posture, although his smile was incredibly strained. "Good luck. We need to go and kill the one that summoned us here. Bye!" Alex grabbed Sol by his arm - the non-demonic one - and started dragging him away, ignoring whatever kind of call that the other kids were shouting at them.

**********************************

After several minutes of forced march, the two stopped near the stairs going downwards, in the only area of the mansion that they hadn't explored yet.

"So, sorry for dragging you; they were making me emotional." Alex fake-shuddered before sighing and calming down. "But yeah. We need to move. I'm… I don't know. I just feel like things are getting worse."

"It's no problem, I gotcha; of course, one would jump at the chance to drink. Can't blame them, I guess…" Sol said, trailing off, trying to avoid the last subject Alex mentioned, before sighing and agreeing with him.

"That woman Laura, and the other two, Allan and Callum, with them dead and gone, we're what, halfway through them? Unless there are other major demons lurking about, we're already dealing with some of the more powerful beings roaming this fucking hell. Those people, sans Arthur, might be dumb, but they're still people. Laura was too close for comfort, too damn close." Sol finished before looking down the stairs.

"Basement huh? Either we're about to walk into Sparda or Eva's private wine collection or another fresh hell, really hoping for a wine collection, to be honest." Sol continued, trying to inject some levity into the conversation.

"We're not that lucky, you know that." Alex commiserated with Sol momentarily before sighing, his shoulders slumping down. "I really hope we are near the end. When was the last time that we slept more than a couple of hours? Hells, when was the last time we slept, period?"

Sol began to walk down the staircase before turning and saying, "I'm not sure. I remember it was at that flat, but not any time since then." He sighed a note of tiredness present, and kept walking down the stairs.

"I really do hope we're reaching the end too." He said before opening the door.

To Sol's dismay, Alex was completely right. They weren't that lucky. There was no conventional cellar beyond the doorway, no no basement turned into an ad-hoc storeroom, and no secret wine reserve for the good guests. Instead, it was a cavernous, hellish-looking hallway reminiscent of the internal sections of an organ.

"Well, at least these things are semi-consistent," Sol said bitterly.

"Yeeeeh, lucky us." Alex's bitter words of fake happiness were enough to make him snort for a second.

"Ok, ok, pity party done for now. We need to move on. The problem is, of course, that I can see at least three different options to move forward… and I have no idea which one is the right one." He waved with his hand towards the entrance. "Night vision, perks of being half demon. More or less. Anyway, left, center, or right?"

"And my Red Eyes can't do that… a fair price for Falcon punching, I guess. Okay, let's choose." Sol began before covering his eyes, raising a finger, and gesturing to the tunnels. He waved his arm several times like a conductor would before an orchestra before eventually pointing at one of the tunnels.

"Okay, which one did my finger land on?" Sol asked while still covering his eyes.

"Left one. You could have just opened your eyes, you know." Alex answered, rolling his eyes, before he started walking down the tunnel. The fleshy-looking walls reminded them of the first room they had seen when they had been summoned there. Here and there, there were even pulsing veins made of some sort of blueish material. Not stone, not flesh, but something else.

Finally, the last thing that really unnerved the two was the fact that there was a subtle sound in the background. Something like a thump-thump-thump, rhythmic, constant, just low enough to be barely heard.

"Okay, not to point out the obvious, but are we inside a heart?" Sol asked quietly as he followed behind Alex.

"Well, I was trying not to think about that, so thank you for that," Alex answered drily before looking around. "Also, I don't know. I don't… I don't think so. At least, I don't think it's a real heart. Maybe something more like a… a conduit of blood or power or both?" Then, he pointed at one of those blue-ish veins.

"We could always try to break through one of these and see what's inside. Maybe there are Red Orbs. Or acid. Or just water. I have no idea."

"If this leads to a dead end, I'll shoot one of the veins from a distance. No harm in trying to see if it's safe with nothing to lose." Sol said while trying to gaze at the spots, Alex pointed to. He could barely make out the shapes, but nothing else beyond that.

"Wait, you can't see in the dark. Sorry, my mistake." Alex noticed all of a sudden before raising suddenly noticed his hand and saying something that made the air shiver. Right after that, a glowing sphere of energy appeared, shedding enough light to show them how organic the tunnel they were in really was.

"...You know, maybe having a light in here is not a good idea. Not for attracting attention, but for… this." And he gestured all around them.

Sol merely swallowed as he looked at… the walls. "That's fair," Sol said as he continued to look at the walls.

"Let's, uh, continue onward as quickly as possible. I don't want to end like that one guy in Fantastic Voyage. Death by hungry white blood cells is not how I want to go out." Sol continued as his gaze returned to the path ahead.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, but I'm happy about it. So, let's move." The light in Alex's hand grew dim until it was just barely enough to see where Sol was putting his feet and not fall prone. The walls and the ceilings, however, were covered in penumbra.

"Better. How much do you think we'll have to travel in this tunnel before we reach… something?" Alex asked idly, his steps making almost no sound on the warm ground.

"At this point, I'm not sure. I won't even cut a mark on the walls in case of any bad reaction. Maybe we should just keep progressing forward until something changes." Sol said, occasionally looking behind him in case of anything.

"I mean, we don't really have any other option, do we?" Alex's answer was incredibly blasè, but he kept walking.

And so, they walked. And walked. And walked some more.

*********************************

Ivan had his arm wrapped tightly around the torso of a demon, a truly mismatched one that danced and attacked wildly but never fast enough for him. He bent backward and slammed the demon into the floor. It thrashed briefly, its hands scrambling for purchase before getting a solid grip on the fleshy floor.

Ivan grinned and brought his axe around, severing a hand and sending something flying through the air, something the demon was focused on more than him. It tried to leap for the object, but Ivan was faster, leaping up and stepping on the demon before snatching the item from the air. When he hit the ground, he turned and slashed out, cutting deeply across its face. The demon howled in pain and rage as it tried to push through it and take back the item. Ivan merely smirked before dodging and taking another limb. The momentum carried the demon forward into a tangle of flailing limbs.

With enough distance now between them, Ivan looked at the item. It was… a bizarre mask that the demons of this type wore. He supposed they had some sort of psychological value to them, like the demonic equivalent to a security blanket. As the demon rose, he grinned and held the mask forward. It stilled, looking at the mask in his hand before Ivan slowly tightened his grip on it. There were a few seconds of agonized creaking before the mask shattered in his hand.

The demon trembled before howling and charging him. He smiled, met its charge, and forced its head through the hollow section of his axe. The inner blade bit into the demon's neck, and he pulled up. It choked and thrashed, but ever so slowly, the neck was separated from the body in a mess of ragged strips of skin, flesh, and bone.

He wished he could savor the moment but…

A noise distracted him as several more demons began to themselves from the fleshy walls to meet him. A devilish grin bloomed across his face. It would appear he could enjoy himself for a little while longer.

********************************

Eventually, the two made their way through the tunnels into a large room with ethereal light and a rhythmic beat. The two originated from the same source, a large heart shaped object suspended above the room with four organic cables snaking from it to several parts of the room. The cables ended in what looked to be large receptacles of interwoven stone and flesh bound to the walls, all of which were covered in gore. The only two things of note in the room were a divinity statue and a large door.

The heart structure must have been used to open it as it shifted in tandem with the beats of the heart. Somewhere, very far off, a faint noise could be heard, but it seemed to be quickly cut off.

"This isn't ominous at all." Alex deadpanned, while also looking around: the room was bare. Not even a demon. No other tunnels - beyond the ones that had led them inside - were present. A forced stop before… whatever was behind that door.

"Well, isn't this a problem? Want to use the statue or do you think we should explore some more first?" He turned towards Sol, pointing at the golden Divinity Statue near the door.

Then, he frowned. "Do you also hear that sound?"

"Yeah," Sol said while looking down the darkened tunnel. His eyes looked at the statue before pointing at it. "We might as well use the statue now while we have the chance. Who knows what made that noise."

To Sol, the noise wasn't human sounding, which could have meant a couple of things, chief among them one, or hopefully not multiple, Red Eyes.

Alex didn't move. Instead, he turned his head to the side, an ear pointed to the ceiling, while a hand covered the other one. His eyes were screwed shut and he was clearly trying to listen to something.

"Sol. Come here for a second." He gestured at a point near his left, with a chopped motion, although his voice was still calm.

Sol approached quickly and asked quietly, "What's going on?"

Alex didn't answer, only raising a hand upwards. A moment later, a giant bubble of gray air appeared above them, casting them in penumbral light.

"Trouble." The heart above them shuddered, and beat three more times before shattering into pieces, several figures falling from it straight toward the ground, straight towards them.

Along with several tonnes of strangely fleshy rock.

With a thundering crash, fleshy rock shattered against the floor, kicking up dust and blood in equal measure. There were noises coming from the epicenter, sounds of pain and misery of a more demonic origin. Then… the dust settled.

Standing, arched over the body of a demon was a man clad in a dark set of armor. It was ornate, but still clearly practical in design. The man grabbed the demon and began to slowly pull up with a twisted looking axe. The demon cried out in agony, and the man stopped before twisting his grip in a way that would cause even more pain. There was no noise from the man, but his body language said more.

The slight shuddering in his frame, the deliberate nature of his actions, and most of all the slowness of his deeds, all began to paint a very disturbing picture. It only became worse when he twitched and turned his head to face Alex and Sol. With another deliberate act, he dragged the axe through the demon's body, severing what passed for its spine in the process. It dropped to the floor, twitching but did not dissipate.

He stepped over the demon's body and began to approach the two, before stopping halfway between them and his descending point. With practiced ease, he lifted the visor of his helmet to reveal a pair of Red Eyes.

"This was unexpected. Hmmm, haha, very unexpected. To think that I would drop in on you like this. I wouldn't have made such a racket if I had known how close you were. It would have given me more time to enjoy myself."

"Oh, a sadist. How original." Alex deadpanned, before snapping his fingers and letting the bubble of stopped time go, the rubble that had been trapped inside it falling around the trio, forming a natural arena.

"Let me guess: you are the second in command? The 'trusted one' of your 'fearless leader'?" The air quotes were audible to everyone, no matter that Alex hadn't done the gesture.

The man looked at the natural arena, and began to chuckle quietly.

"About original as anything else here. They're demons, they make us suffer so why shouldn't we make them?" However with his next sentence, all traces of levity were gone from his voice.

"If I was what you say I am, do you think I would be here? No, no I'm not but I guess you knew that already, didn't you?" He asked the pair.

"Laura hinted as much." Sol said warily as he began to draw his weapons. "But she also ranted about vampire novels, so that was something else."

"Heh. She was always obsessed with that genre." He turned around and walked back to the demon. It was still twitching before he brought his axe down upon it. The demon burst into a multitude of red orbs and while he was taking them into himself, he turned on his heel and faced the two.

"Blood. That's how it all began. Demons used us as cattle, a fuel that could amuse them. You call me a sadist, but I see my actions as following a system that has been in place long since mankind even knew how to build the most basic of societies. For more than two thousand years. They brought that system here and if not for a weak link, that system could have held absolute authority. It changed the course of history in ways we can never fully understand. Do you think that as weak as we were, we could ever affect anything the same way?" He asked in a coy tone.

Alex cocked his head to the side. "I will tell you the same thing I said before: I do not judge the demons for attacking and killing humans, for that is their nature. Same as the wolf hunts the deer and the killer whale pursues the seals."

He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck, Calcabrina appearing in his hands. "However, I will judge you, for you are - or were, anyway - a human, thus possessing both reason and morality. You are not an animal guided by only instinct, nor are you a demon that knows only violence and bloodshed. Tell me, whoever you are." A pause.

Alex slowly, carefully planted the umbrella on the ground in front of himself, both hands folded over the handle.

"Who are you, member of the Red Eyes? What was your name, before you decided that corrupted power lent in bad faith was more important than being yourself?"

There was a sound of a steady, calming breath from beneath the helmet. The man rolled his shoulders before speaking. "So, you are a sanctimonious one like Gabrielle. Heh, my name is Ivan, and I suppose last names don't really matter here anymore. I'm not like that little shit Allan when I say that. My name is short, it gets to the point. As for power over self, shouldn't that question apply to you two as well? We've all clearly gone down the same path. But I guess that really won't matter now, you'll drop the holier than thou act when you scream for mercy." He ended quietly, pointing his axe at the two.

What came out of Alex wasn't a laugh: it was too short and clipped for it to be one. It was more of a bark, a short emanation of sound that turned into a closed chuckle a moment later.

"Before we start trying to kill each other, I'm going to correct you on two points. First, this is not me being sanctimonious, this is me being me. I think this, so I explained to you what I think and why I find you and your friends or allies or companions or however you want to call them, contemptible in front of me. Of the Six Hundred Sixty-Six people that have been brought here by whatever demon had created this trap, me and Sol are the ONLY ones that can claim the higher moral ground. Don't paragon me to one of yours, they are a Paper Tiger and we are a roaring inferno."

The smile that graced Alex's face was crazed and incredibly sinister, his power leaking all around him.

"Second of all, no, we are not the same in the power department, either. You see, when you took the cheaper option, the one that the statue labels with the L between ellipsis? You are not buying or augmenting the power inside your own soul. You are growing the power that the demon had lent to you at the start: with all your disgust and contempt for demons, you are nothing more than a vessel for the power of one, right now."

The crazed grin was now consuming his entire face, his eyes shining, while a strange weight was weighing down the air in the room, smelling of dust and ancient books and antiques and the silence of someone standing in an empty museum, being judged by pieces of history.

Time was weighing on them, right now.

"We started from nothing. We refused power that wasn't already ours. We were basically normal humans when we killed our first Marionette. We were almost powerless when the second one came and almost killed us. We worked slowly and almost died, more than once, because we were growing our own power. And, in the end, we managed to rip away from us the parasite that the demon had implanted into us. You?"

Alex raised a single hand, pointing his right index finger at Ivan, who was starting to look a bit unsettled by what was happening.

"You only fed it. You grew it, with shower after shower of Red Orbs, growing both the parasite and the demon that gave it to you. Congrats, Ivan of the Red Eyes. You are directly responsible for giving one of the demons you so scorn more and more power."

"... If that's true then, then I'll kill you both and take what power you have! If your bark is as big as your bite then it'll be enough to kill that demon all the same!" He shouted before slamming his visor down. Unknown to all three of them, as he did so, his eyes flashed a deep purple and from deeper within the Qliphoth, three faces faintly smiled.

"It's true, it's true, I don't lie." Alex said, like a liar. "But, ah… That part about my bark…"

Ivan's charge - he had started dashing towards Alex right after he had closed his helmet - slammed against the canopy of the umbrella, only Alex's face visible above it, still sporting that malicious grin.

"I can assure you. My bite is much worse than yours!" In the fastest time ever, he charged and shot the Tar Beam, sending Ivan backward and slamming him against one wall of the arena, cracking the rocks.

Sol was on him as soon as Ivan impacted the wall. Unleashing a Stinger, Sol's intent was to skewer the Red Eyed man right then and there. Unfortunately, that's not what happened as Gevaudan was caught mid strike and forced it down, bringing Sol eye to eye with the Red Eyed man.

"Your eyes are like ours." The Red Eye started with surprise before Sol leveled a demonic punch directly at his head. The man's head snapped back from the blow, and Sol rolled away from the immediate area.

There was the sound of stones shifting as Ivan pulled himself free. As he did so, the right side of his helmet was severely dented, and he struggled to remove the battered helm off his head. With a grunt, his head was free of the helmet. His curly blonde hair would have normally painted the appearance of a classical cherub if only it wasn't contrasted by the pair of demonic eyes and cruel smirk.

"I stand corrected. Your eyes aren't like ours. If they were, you'd have tried to finish me then and there or dragged it out for as long as possible."

"Consider them a result of the body parts I used to save my own life!" Sol spat before lashing out with Gevaudan in its whip state.

Ivan attempted to block the strike, but Gevaudan was a hair quicker than he could raise his axe. The bone whip sliced along his face. Ivan responded with a laugh before lunging forward.

An umbrella stopped the hit on its track. Alex was instantly in front of him, showing his teeth and greeting Ivan. His eyes were even more inhuman than his own red ones.

"You know… Your eyes are murky." The conversational tone he had used was more than enough to make him blink and rear back a little, only to find that his axe wasn't moving with him, remaining back where he had slammed against Alex's shield. A gray bubble was keeping it stuck in mid air.

"Yep. Murky. You lack conviction."

"Conviction!" He shouted, his face a mask of blood and indignation as he began to attack Calcabrina in an attempt to get at Alex. "You wouldn't know half of it! All you are! All you've done! You were just following in our footsteps, our tria…GRRK!"

In his moment of rage, he didn't pay attention to the fact that Sol had moved to his right with Gevaudan retracted before stabbing Ivan underneath the arm.

"Maybe you started that path, but that wasn't why we did it." Sol said before twisting the blade. "We did it because we knew no other course, and we never crossed whatever line you did!" Sol hissed.

Ivan twisted his head and squared his feet. "You will, one day you will. It doesn't matter if we're human, demon, or a bastard hybridization. We'll be chasing that line till the very end!" He finished with a shout as he twisted, arcs of electricity dancing off his body. Sol using Time Step managed to move out of the way, but suffered as his hands spasmed briefly.

"What line, exactly?" Alex's expression was the same as a cat that was playing with a mouse. He was even relaxed, using Calcabrina as a walking stick, leaning on it, completely unperturbed.

"Killing another human being? Been there, done that. Doing unspeakable things for power? Again, been there, done that. Take parts of a demon that almost killed me to survive, leaving part of my humanity behind?" He raised his hands in a showman pose, wide open, before he twirled on his heel, smiling wide.

"Why do you think my eyes aren't red?"

The thunder crackled around Ivan like a shroud as he looked between the two. His breathing was hitching occasionally and it seemed that he wanted to favor his right but refused to.

"Because of the same reason why you two are attacking me together, because you're weak. You're like all the others from before, talking about a line they wouldn't cross. We crossed that line and we're stronger for it." Something seemed to dance across his vision.

"Well most of us are stronger anyway. You've seen to that already."

Alex blinked. Before nodding. "Well, you are entitled to your opinions. Still, allow me to correct a misconception."

He took a single step forward and, for the first time, he called upon his Devil Trigger while in complete control of his mind. "We are not attacking you together because we are weak."

The scales grew from his feet upwards, black and silver, covering his body, under the stupefied eyes of Ivan.

"Nor because we are scared or something like that."

They reached the torso, thickening a little around the waist, before turning into incredibly tiny scales that looked like leather at a first glance, covering the upper body in a flexible, yet strong, armor.

"The reason we are attacking together…" Finally, the transformation reached his neck, hair and face disappearing under a featureless helmet, slightly sloped backward. "Is because we want to get rid of you and your ilk as soon as possible. Because your group WAS a danger to us. Before. Now, all you are is a nuisance."

Calcabrina opened with a snap, the edges of the umbrella gleaming like razor blades, a subtle vibration charging in the entire canopy.

"Want a suggestion?" Alex smiled, behind his helmet. "Run."

Ivan breathed heavily, before smiling. "No."

The thunder roared around him as his eyes began to change color, flashes of purple dancing across them.

"No, I don't think so. I came too far to die to you both. Hell, if I kill you both I could kill Gabrielle and Zeke! Show that creepy bastard whose superior. So come on, you too! Show me your power! I'll cut your hearts out anyway!!!"

Sol stood there, slightly dumbfounded. "You… you're truly lost, aren't you? You're not even fighting for your original purpose. You're little more than a demon."

"And what's wrong with that!? At least it's honest!"

And as Ivan cried out, Sol felt that familiar rage behind his eyes. His arm twitched and unconsciously curled into a fist. Dark energy streamed from the arm and surrounded Sol, his form pitching forward as it began to change. His armor began to warp and flow before darkening and fusing with his body.

A pair of horns grew from either side of his head and swept forward past a pair of blank white eyes like a demonic laurel crown. From his scalp, short cords that mimicked hair grew and multiplied into a black mane. His lips curled curled in exertion, revealing rows of sharpened teeth. As the transformation progressed further, his skin took on the same dark, chitinous, scale-like features that his arm exhibited, crimson lines racing across every exposed part. While looking far less aggressively organic than its composite base, the armor became black, accented by the barest hints of green. As the transformation continued, Sol's whole body took on this near bestial armored form, save for the left arm, which was left completely exposed.

"Well then, I hope that honesty will console you, because it ends here!" Sol hissed before lunging .

"You're right Sol. It does." Alex half knelt in front of Ivan, bringing Calcabrina to his left side, his left hand grasping the closed umbrella near the seam of the blade's handle, his right hand grabbing the hilt.

"What do you think you're doing? Kneeling to me won't save you, after your words…"

"Geryon-Iai, First Chime." The blade was freed from the sheath by an inch or so.

"Cutting Between The Seconds."

And then it was brought back into the sheath. Apparently, nothing had happened.

Apparently...

Ivan blinked, clearly unsure of what was happening, but the simple fact that the transformation that Alex had used was now vanishing into flakes of silver dust, he started getting bolder. "So, you're all talk! Just like that…"

The arm he was using to point his weapon towards Alex fell off, sliced at the shoulder. The cut was so perfect that he didn't even feel pain. Only the sound of blood gushing from the wound.

"GAHHH!!!!" Ivan howled as his mind realized what had occurred before falling down towards the fallen limb.

"NO, NOT YET! I CAN'T DIE HERE!!" He roared as the arm broke down into thunder. The electrical discharges coalesced around his severed shoulder, forming what could only be described as a truly phantom limb. It stretched out to the edges of the arena, carving deep gouges into the rocks as he thrashed in pain. At the same time, the ground began to heave and roil, with large cracks beginning to form on the floor.

"Well, unfortunately it is not up to you. But, hey, I'm gonna tell you a secret, Ivan." Alex, somewhat relaxed, tapping the tip of the umbrella against the ground.

"The secret of why you lost to me." The hybrid smirked, before taking a step back and avoiding a rock.

"Because you forgot I'm not your only opponent."

"WHA…!?" Ivan attempted to say before a blade pierced him from behind. Sol, still in DT, began to remove Gevaudan and began to fall into familiar motions of Beat Cut, flowing into Thriller and finally ending with Demon's Dance. Each time he struck Ivan's body, deeper and deeper wounds formed along his back and the false arm of thunder diminished more and more until eventually, it faded entirely.

Ivan fell forward, his lifeless body collapsing into a growing pool of his own blood, as a massive amount of red orbs erupted from him.

*crack*

"You should have talked less and fought us more." Sol said bitterly as he reverted to human form. He wrung his arm out as if on instinct before looking at Alex.

"Thank you for throwing him off his game. I don't even want to know what he could have done with that lightning claw arm he manifested." Sol continued.

*Crack*

"Still, I guess that means we really are coming to the end right? I mean there's only two left and th…" Sol never finished his sentence though…

*CRACK!!!*

As… the unseen damage from the battle caused the floor to collapse out from underneath and the red eye's body. The fall wasn't a long one but it was enough to shock the system. There was just enough light filtering down to see the room above as well as something else.

Along the edges of the hole were a series of large, jagged spike-like objects curling into the floor like nightmarish fish hooks.

Sol merely looked from the hooks to Alex before saying. "Remind me never to get on the wrong side of your verbal game."

Alex just smiled, before shrugging and pointing to the side, towards the doors with the Divinity Statue.

"So, that way or are we going back. Or down?" He pointed towards the hole, although the stone barbs that lined the edges made the whole thing look like the entrance to hell. Several even had red splatters on them, from where Ivan had impacted them in his fall.

"Also, my verbal game is not that strong. It's just that… Well, Ivan was… not completely done, I think. Kind of a pity. Didn't you notice?"

Sol was quiet for a moment before responding. "Yeah, kinda like the first one, Allan, in a way, but maybe… less focused, easier to piss of. Maybe it's something we're not aware of?" Sol asked before looking at the various paths.

"I say we head back to the statue first and then… fuck it further down I guess. Creepy ass hell hole is right there like some sort of schmuck bait." Sol said with a gesture.

"I meant more the fact that his name didn't appear as a Boss one." Alex reminded Sol, before looking down the hole. "Also, beyond lightning, having power over earth… He was a very dangerous enemy. Sad that he wasn't as strong as he thought he was."

"Shit, you're right… Didn't Laura mention something about the left hand being weaker than the right? That doesn't bode well at all." Sol responded tepidly.

"Well, I don't think he was weaker than what a Boss was supposed to be. No, I'm thinking that it was his mentality." Alex leaned on Calcabrina, clearly thinking, his eyes unfocused. "If we assume that hostility is a prerequisite for something or someone to be a Boss, maybe Ivan, for all his projected sadism, wasn't all that hostile. Or maybe these are just fanciful daydreams, who knows. I always want to try and find a… humanizing factor in villains. Consider it a characteristic of a writer's mind."

Alex shrugged, before pointing back towards the statue. "Shall we go?"

"Yeah, don't know how long it will be until we find another statue." Sol said.

********************************

The idea of color and theme contrast was always something that Gabrielle favored in her life before the hell she found herself. It was a theme she always incorporated into the little things around her, and while some of her contemporaries and critics may have called her insistence upon it in her works a little obsessive, she would always say that she found it comforting.

The blood that was pooling from the body of a slain Abyss in comparison to stark white marble floors that she and Zeke had been traveling through was an example of such contrast. There had been a great deal of Abyss's in this part of hell as well as bizarre demons styled after chess pieces of all things.

She would have continued her musings if not for the sound of thunder and grinding. Turning, she witnessed something entirely new. There past her, was Zeke. Thunder roiled off his body as he slowly moved his arms. Gabrielle saw before Zeke the image of a tree-like tower. Each time Zeke moved, thunder struck and shifted the image, righting just ever more slightly.

She was so enraptured by the image that she almost missed the sound of demons manifesting in this hellish mockery of the heavens above. She rolled her shoulders and unfurled her fans.

"You demons truly do not know when to let us be, do you?" She said, turning to face the growing horde. She didn't know what awaited them on the other side of that gate but she would ensure Zeke succeeded in opening it.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

The demon that once was Lusachia and the human that was once Zeke silently raged. Ivan, that useless fool has died to the interlopers, too damn busy indulging himself to kill them when he was able to!

What were once two anomalies had become something of a legitimate threat to its plans. Oh it had no doubt it could kill them if it needed to, but it would also have to work on its final set of harvests so that their power would be a worthy sacrifice. Something which was much harder now that the interlopers had warned them of its blessings.

*Zssst!*

It grimaced at the feedback. Its little slice of hell might have been perfect for trapping wayward humans and demons, but using the memories of one of the Sons of Sparda for its foundation had unforeseen consequences. It was separated from itself in a way it didn't foresee when starting this journey and it was only through fortune that the part of it formerly known as Zeke was so willingly to do anything to survive.

It smiled to itself briefly before continuing to work its power against the seal. Beyond it lay the human world and the remnants of the Qliphoth, where its true body remained. It breathed in frustration before looking backwards for an instant. Its last little project, its loyal dragon so to speak, was cutting a bloody swathe through every demon attracted to this singular place. It turned back to the seal, shifted another shattered branch and pushed further.

It was the way, it was the gate, it was the end.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Gabrielle folded her fans before running a hand through her hair, flicking away the blood that had matted it across her features, before putting her helmet back on. The most recent horde had been slaughtered to a demon, and all she had to do from this point was wait.

*************************************

The statue stood, as it always did, in front of the two of them. Alex nodded, before pushing Sol forward.

"You need to clear out your techniques for your arm. And see what your Devil Trigger has unlocked, too. I need… To think." And he took a couple of steps back, letting himself lean on Calcabrina and closing his eyes.

"Alright, alright. Just watch yourself while I'm gone." Sol said before touching the statue. Finding himself in the void once again, he looked at the figure of the statue.

"Okay, I'm here to make a whole lot of purchases."

The menu opened up and Sol stopped to look at his wallet amount.

"That's nearly 600K, holy shit… oh we're going to have fun today."

Scrolling through menus, Sol began to look at the options available before remembering what Alex had said. Looking at his options he saw two new additions to the list Midnight Punch and Infernal Punch. Respectively, the two cost a combined total of a 100k and as much as that was a steep price, purchased the options.

Upon doing so, he felt power flood into his arm and for a moment he saw a demonic energy, first red, then purple, and finally a jet black.

"That'll make someone's day." Sol said before looking back at the list.

He had most of the abilities from his weapons save for the new options for Nymphaeum… and with his last purchases he was just shy of 500k, so that super boost option wasn't available. At least not yet.

He calculated the numbers and came up with 296,000 for his purchases. Okay, that'd leave him with 201,050 red orbs which was still quite a lot.

Sol made the required purchases, feeling new power fill Nymphaeum. However, when he purchased the Hybrid Power Enhancement he felt his body seize as a flood of power flowed through him. Unlike before however, there was an electrifying sensation that was beyond what Sol could have imagined. It lasted for both an impossibly short and agonizingly long amount of time. When the sensation passed, Sol collapsed forward. He lay for several seconds eyes wide, before shakily standing up.

"Wa… was that a Quickening?" Sol asked the statue.

There was no response from the statue and Sol opened the menus once more. He looked at the menus and wondered what to buy if there was anything else. He could have filled out some abilities but… he rubbed at his wrists and felt the sharpened claws that adorned his left hand. With something akin to a revelation, he scrolled through the lists and came upon the option Magic Knowledge Level 1 for 500.

"I'm not going to steal your thunder Alex, but I could use some illusions to hide this arm."

He looked at his wallet, and watched it drop to 200,550. He almost thought to max out everything, but the idea of getting that additional power boost in case of anything was too tempting.

"Vergil might have been a deadbeat, but instead of ripping off arms, I'll be investing in myself." Sol finished before leaving the Statue's realm.

Returning back to the underground, he looked at Alex, "That was… a rush."

Alex smirked, nodding lazily, before cracking his back and vanishing Calcabrina back into his inventory. "So, if you're done for now, I'll purchase a couple of things that I still have to." He strutted - purposefully - towards the statue and tapped it. The white-gold space greeted him.

As usual, he bowed to the statue, before starting to scroll through his options for a little while, until he reached the end of what was available to him and returned to the start.

"Yeah, these four are the best options." Biting his lips, he dropped the 150.000 Red Orbs needed to maximize the enhancements, both physical and mystical.

The shock he received with the energies coursing through his body made him contract everything all together, sending him flying back and on the ground in front of Sol.

"Ouch."

"Are… are you okay?" Sol asked worriedly.

"Just bonked my head on the ground. At least I didn't end in the hole. THAT would have been painful." Alex smiled, hissing a little from the impact.

"Yeah… yeah" Sol began with a chuckle. "What happened that sent you flying like that?" Sol finished with a question.

"You remember the 'enhancement' options that are, more or less, at the top of the list? I took all of those. And…" Alex stopped for a moment, stretching fully. All his bones popped like fireworks. "If how I'm feeling is any hint, you should take them too."

Sol's eyes widened slightly. "That means you're stronger than me… hah! Although, I wonder how that stacks with Hybrid Power Enhancement? Let me tell you something, that first stage version is a rush." He said with excitement.

The way the full hybrid smiled was all that was needed: he had felt the same energy coursing through his body, after all. It was a power trip like few others.

"Yeah, I know, I know. You should max them out, too. This close - I'm assuming we are close, at least - to the final boss we cannot risk any chance."

"Well, I was saving my remaining red orbs for the second level of empowerment. Hell we're in hell, so we'll probably find enough to make up the difference between here and home. Probably help with getting some good illusion magic when you think about it." Sol said in agreement before reaching for the statue again.

Except, when Sol was about to touch the statue, a noise began to emanate throughout. An echoing bird-like laugh made itself known, first beginning as a low warble then raising in pitch into an oscillating laugh.

Sol spun on his heels and drew his blade. "Where the hell is that coming from?" He asked warily.

The statue gave no answer. The last echoes of the laughter vanished, leaving only the memory behind.

And yet there was another noise, one faintly growing louder and louder as if it were responding to the bizarre laughter. It sounded like a song, a bird's song. The song began to become more distinct until it sounded through the walls of the room they were in. It moved closer and closer until it eventually stopped just outside of what the two considered to be the main exit of the area. The fleshy walls parted like a door to reveal blinding light and stark horror.

What lay behind the door was… the physical antithesis of the fleshy room. It was a stark white landscape whose defining features were marble columns, staircases, effigies, and gates. All these features contrasted with a gray-white void that seemed to stretch endlessly across a broad, unending horizon. In any other situation, it would have looked pure and orderly. Like a vision of Heaven sent to calm the minds of the weary.

The blood that pooled from the large door, the mass of demonic bodies that tumbled out, and the bloodstained figure standing tall among them shattered that image like a rock through a plate glass window.

The bird song reached a crescendo, and the laughter from before rang out again. The figure turned, revealing itself to be like Ivan before, armor-clad, though more distinctly feminine in frame, before casually nudging a body away from her with her foot.

Alex didn't say anything. He just stood there with a pair of boots in his hands and a rather surprised expression on his face. The laughter - slowly vanishing, on its last dregs and all the more horrifying for the distorted way it echoed around the chamber could now be easily pinpointed as coming from the boots, as well as the song came from the armor-clad woman's fans.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Out of the Frying pan and into the fire as they say. This chapter fought me like you wouldn't believe, with various technical issues that popped up while I was doing its final check. Hence why it came out after I wanted it to.

The next chapter is going to be a bit different, as we are going to experience a bit of POV shift. Enjoy everyone!

 

[Atma]

The light had changed. It was a subtle thing Gabrielle realized, but the tiniest shift in this world of pale light was the difference between peace and war. She gazed skyward and saw a trio of figures slowly descend toward her and Zeke. She recognized them and knew that despite their appearance, they were just as evil as the world around her. The three demons swooped down to attack as if realizing their deception was seen, and Gabrielle met them.

Her jump was low but just high enough to grab onto one of the Fallen's legs. It thrashed as her weight brought it down to the pathway below. Before it could do anything else, she moved between its wing and its body before dragging her blade through its torso, waist to throat. The Fallen fell backward in a spray of blood, and Gabrielle spun on her heel and leaped up to avoid another Fallen's attack. On her descent, she brought her fans across the demon's neck and kicked off of it. The headless demon collapsed in a heap of limbs and feathers, but Gabrielle was already in motion. She snapped one of her fans shut and launched it at the last Fallen. The fan flew through a gap between the Fallen's feathered shield, pierced the demon's chest, and exited through the back, severing its spine in the process.

Gabrielle wordless called the fan back to her and with a melodic song, it flew back into her waiting palm. She collected the orbs that fell from the demons and looked back to Zeke, finding he was still arranging that bizarre puzzle that would open the way to The Demon's lair and she attempted to resume her position by his side. Unfortunately she never was able to. The light changed once again and from the sky more Fallen began to descend.

"Fine. I could use the boost in power." Gabrielle stated aloud before fishing out a vitality star and crushing it. The demons swooped down towards her as the feeling of wellness flowed through her body. She began to backpedal, parrying the various strikes that the Fallen began to level at her. One Fallen attempted a dive that would have struck the top of her skull before luck proved to be on Gabrielle's side. As she moved to dodge another strike, the fallen crashed down. Not skipping a beat, Gabrielle let out a vicious kick, snapping the falling Fallen's arm and sending it careening into its fellows. With a moment of relief, she threw one of her fans at another demon before snatching up the Fallen sword. With a half step, she shifted around another's guard, thrust, and twisted. The resulting wound caused the demon to fall to its knees.

However, what little victory and room that may have given her was short lived. With a resounding boom, several presences made themselves known behind her. Turning, she saw that it was another series of stone-like demons styled after chess pieces. The one that she assumed was the King began to glow violently and emit a blast of demonic energy towards her. Reacting, she was forced to throw herself to the side as a brilliant flash of demonic energy filled the world. In doing so, she was forced to unveil her own hidden trick. Boosting her movement, a single articulated wing burst from her back. The surge of motion saved her life, but that was not the point of the King's attack. The King piece began to emit more and more demonic radiance, burning the very stone of the platform with its sheer heat before the five pieces turned to face her.

Gabrielle looked past the demonic chess piece and saw the damage and saw that it had separated her from Zeke. She attempted to move forward, to get around them and back to his side, and for the pieces to close rank and slide their way across the floor like a moving demonic wall. She began to backstep and saw that the remaining Fallen hovered silently in the air, cutting off. For a moment, there was silence as the two parties sized themselves up before the sound of a cackle split the air. The Queen rolled its stone head back and flew towards Gabrielle at breakneck speeds. Using her wing, she leaped up to avoid the strike, only to be intercepted by another Fallen. Wrestling with the demon, she was brought down directly into the path of the Rook. With a tremor, the piece opened itself up and unleashed a blast of demonic energy at the two. Using her wing as leverage, Gabrielle launched off the ground and used the Fallen as a shield. The blast tore straight through it and the force sent her flying back right into the descending path of the Knight. The horse-headed demon began to slam down on the spot where Gabrielle had landed. Rolling out of the way, she retaliated by slashing at the piece several times. However, while the cuts were deep and would have normally impeded movement, they began to pull themselves together.

Seeing another piece out of the corner of her eye channeling energy, she quickly realized what was going on and abandoned her battle with the Knight piece. She began to run towards what she assumed was the Bishop and spied one of the last Fallen on intercept. Grinning, she closed and threw both her fans at the Bishop, impacting it in the chest and base, and then leaped at the Fallen. The flying demon attempted to strike her, but she was faster and grabbed its blade arm. The sudden arrest of motion allowed her to use her weight to pitch the Fallen forward and down on top of the Bishop. The Fallen Blade cut through its owner and the Bishop's head, and with a thought, the fans opened. In a storm of chunks and dust, the Bishop shattered into a mess of demonic stone. However, her small victory was short-lived.

With a shriek, the King piece roared, and the corona of demonic energy threw her to the side between the Queen and the Rook. A part of her realized what was coming and wanted to flee, but another part realized the opportunity. She watched as the Rook began to open anew and listened for what she assumed was the telltale cackle of the Queen. When it came, she stood still for a second and a half longer than most would have and finally dodged. The Queen piece screamed past and into the Rook's blast, heavily damaging it… but also destroying the Rook in the process. She turned towards the Knight and watched as it rolled its head in defiance of her. Calling her fans back, she held them at her sides and began to charge it, moving at the last instant and using her wing for a boost. The Knight's blade-like protrusion missed her by a mile and left it wide open. With an unconscious smile, she descended, carving deeply into the stone several times before throwing her arms to either side. The Knight jerked slightly before breaking apart.

She heard the cackle again before taking flight once more, the Queen rocketing past her and the King shrieking once more, its blazing aura destroying more of the bridge. Both seemed to move to come around to her front, and she began to realize her options of getting back to Zeke were becoming virtually nonexistent by remaining on this bridge. Looking around briefly, she eyed a set of stairs that led upwards and quickly took them. Coming to the head of the staircase, she saw that it stood at a circular area that looked like it connected to the entrance they took when they entered this place. Her thoughts were interrupted as another shriek came, and she saw the damaged Queen be thrown to her position. Another shriek came shortly thereafter as the King made itself known. It moved behind her, in front of a large mockery of an angelic figure. She realized that she had taken her eyes off the Queen for far too long and heard the cackle before it charged her. Leaping out of the way, she watched as the Queen turned, shredding the floor as it did so.

"Even in this damaged state, its speed is tremendous, and with its power, it would only need to hit me a few times as opposed to the times I could strike it… Think! THINK!" She thought as her mind raced.

With another cackle, the Queen charged again, and Gabrielle dodged once more, this time noticing the aura around the King, building and growing in intensity.

"That aura keeps pushing me back. I would need… That's it!"

She descended slowly, letting herself fall between the King and Queen. The stillness for a second that seemed to drag on forever.

"Come on, do it. I'm right in front of you!" She thought frantically as she felt more and more demonic energy roil from the King's position.

The Queen was silent until she let out an oddly keening cackle before screaming forward. Gabrielle waited until the last second before flying upwards. She could feel the tips of the crown against the soles of her boots before hearing and then seeing the Queen piece collide with the King. The two smashed against each other, and the sudden torrent of demonic energy threw her across the platform like a strike from God.

Gabrielle didn't know how long she lay there, but it had to be long enough for whatever passed for adrenaline in her body to ebb away. She began to hiss in tightly controlled pain and felt the burns she received from the demons, as well as the sensation of torn muscles from her previous battle against the Fallen. With a groan, she sat up and looked out across the pale expanse to Zeke. She could make him out in the distance. The pale light from his current task shone ever still and, more importantly, with a distinct lack of demons. She sighed in relief and began to wonder how she would get back to him upon shifting her to the now-destroyed bridge. Her musings were interrupted, however, by a grinding noise.

She turned and saw that the mock angel statue was drawing in the demonic energy still emanating from the two statues, pulling it into the area that exposed its prominent spinal column. Its marble flesh began to change, taking on a pale but unmistakably fleshy tone. There was silence, and then it spoke.

"COMETH F'RWARD, ALLOWETH ME SEETH THEE, THIEF."

Gabrielle began to rise to her feet but remained silent, unwilling to humor the demon.

"THOU WOULD HOLDETH THY TONGUE? THERE IS NO SHAME IN THINE ACTIONS, ONLY IN THY RETICENCE. SPEAK THIEF AND BE TRUE TO THYSELF."

"Why, why do you refer to me as a thief?" Gabrielle finally asked the demonic statue.

"AS I LOOK UPON THEE, I SEETH THE WING OF ONE MY KIN, A BLESSED OF THE FATHER."

"A demon, the wing of a demon that attempted to take my life and the lives of others," Gabrielle interjected.

The statue was silent for several moments before responding, "WHAT THOU CALLEST DEMON, I WOULD CALL BRETHREN."

It attempted to roll its shoulders, and Gabrielle watched as the recession it was in shifted, with spider-like cracks appearing along the edges.

"HOWEVER, I BELIEVE I UNDERSTANDETH THY REASONING. WE HAVE FALLEN, WE HAVE LOST OUR LUSTER IN THINE EYES. TO THEE, WE ARE LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN THE SPAWN OF THE FALLING STAR AND HIS BASTARD SUCCESSORS."

Another groan and the right side of the recession shattered, revealing a proportionally muscular arm. Gabrielle took a step back without realizing it.

"HOWEVER, WE ONCE WERE KNOWN TO THINE ANCESTORS. WE ONCE LOVED THINE KIN AND IN RETURN WERE BELOVED BY THEM."

It was that statement that dragged Gabrielle's mind to a painting she once studied, of a woman pouring water while being watch…

"You are a watcher, a Grigori." Gabrielle declared with no small degree of surprise

"THEN IT HEARTENS ME TO KNOW THAT WE ARE STILL KNOWN TO THEE, DESPITE HIS WISHES. YES, WE LOVED THEE AND WERE BELOVED BY THEE. YET HE SPURNED OUR DESIRES AND RENDERED UNTO US A FATE NO BETTER THAN THE SERPENT. OUR CHILDREN WERE MIGHTY, GREAT, AND MORE WORTHY OF THIS WORLD THAN YOU THIEVING HALF-BREEDS, AND YET HE DASHED THEM AGAINST THE WATERS OF THE WORLD WHEN THEY WOULD NOT BEND THE KNEE."

The recession finally gave way, and the angelic demon emerged onto the platform. Its headless frame towered over her.

"I WOULD OFFER THEE AN ACCORD; OFFER UNTO ME YOUR STRENGTH TO OPEN THE WAY TO THE WORLD OF YOUR KIN, AND IN RETURN, I WOULD SHARE WITH THEE THE SECRETS THAT THE HEAVENS WOULD DENY YOU."

Without hesitation, Gabrielle responded, "No, I know of a path and I will walk with only one other." She wouldn't turn her back on Zeke like Ivan had. His was the way and the right path home. Even as she said it, her hands drifted down to her fans.

The demon looked beyond her and responded. "THOU ART IN LOVE, BUT IF HE CARED, HE WOULD BE HERE BY THINE SIDE. I WOULD LOVE THEE IN HIS PLACE, AND THOU WOULD KNOW OF A LOVE GREATER THAN ANY POET OF THE LAND COULD IMAGINE."

"And my answer remains the same. I am no traitor. I will stay my course. Do not interfere with our duty." Gabrielle declared before drawing her fans and flaring her wing.

The demon began to let loose a deep reverberating chuckle. "THOU ART A FOOL AND TRAITOR STILL. THE BLOOD OF YOUR KIN, BOTH MAN AND DEVIL, STAIN THY HANDS. OF GREATER IMPORT STILL, THOU HAST ALREADY BEEN BETRAYED."

"What did you say?" Gabrielle asked in disbelief.

"IT MATTERS NOT, FOR THOU AND THINE LOVE WILL FALL THIS DAY AND I SHALL RETURN TO THE LOVE OF MANKIND!"

SEMYAZA: WATCHER OF DESIRE​

In a burst of speed that shocked her, the demon lunged forward, its outstretched hands grasping at her as she unconsciously threw herself backward. The resulting thunderclap produced a sound that, for a moment, brought forth a wave of nauseating disorientation in her being. Gabrielle was not sure if it was the sound or her previously prolonged battle that caused it, but she was sure that letting it continue would not be in her best interest.

Using her wing for extra lift, she leaped over the demon before closing her fans and trying to carve down the length of its back. She realized very quickly, though, that this would be a problem. Not only did her fans lack the capability of making a truly noticeable effect on the demon's stone-like skin, but it was quickly apparent that the demon had one thing she didn't. The gouges and cracks on the demon's back began to quickly close and seal themselves in front of her eyes.

She watched as the demon turned and regarded her.

"DOST THOU THINK AN INCOMPLETE WEAPON SUCH AS THAT COULD HARM ME!? I HAVE EXPERIENCED FAR WORSE TRIBULATIONS THAN THOU COULD POSSIBLY IMAGINE!" Semyaza roared in anger before charging her again. Gabrielle was able to dodge the charge with some degree of leeway, and that may have saved her life. The resulting pressure from the demon's movement was such that it felt like a slap from god himself. The demon twisted its upper half before its feet moved in step, and Gabrielle got an idea.

"My fans won't cause enough damage to kill the demon outright, and it regenerates too quickly to bleed it. That spine, though, if I could break it like the damned chess pieces earlier, that could slow him down."

"THOU DO NOT ATTACK? HAVE THOU BEGUN TO SEE THE FUTILITY OF THINE ACTIONS?"

"No, I was just imagining how much easier things will be when you die," Gabrielle responded.

With a wordless shout, the demon charged again, this time clapping its hands as it did so. This had two effects. The first was that it slowed Semyaza's speed, and that might have been good if it had not been for the second effect. The sounds from the claps were like an ever-pounding thunder in Gabrielle's ears.

Disorientated, Gabrielle stumbled back and cupped her hands around her ears, leaving herself open. Semyaza took the opportunity gleefully and smacked Gabrielle with his open palm. The force of the sucked the air from her lungs and sent her flying across and over the platform. There was a moment of sheer weightlessness before Gabrielle realized she was falling and righted her descent. It wasn't perfect, as she partially fell over the side of the platform she aimed herself at. She leaned forward and carefully pushed herself forward until she could safely sit.

She realized almost immediately that she was on the bridge that connected to…

*SLAM*

Her thoughts were interrupted as Semyaza landed in front of her, quickly taking a half step forward, and the shock of his landing destroyed the segment of the bridge. There was a moment of stillness between the two before Semyaza charged again. Gritting her taking and pushing away the pain, Gabrielle met the charge and decided she needed to end this battle now. Semyaza attempted to swing both arms wide in an attempt to either catch Gabrielle in a dodge or further force her back.

Gabrielle performed something else. She met the charge and slid underneath Semyaza. The demon, realizing what had happened, attempted to turn but was too slow. It felt two sharp stings of pain emanate from its spine, and unlike before, the pain did not fade. Fully turning, Semyaza saw Gabrielle and stomped. The force sent spiderweb cracks throughout the bride, and with another quick stomp, the bride began to collapse into the void. Gabrielle had leaped at the moment Semyaza's foot came a second time and maneuvered above and over him.

Semyaza repositioned himself and asked sharply, "DO THOU BELIEVE THY STINGS CAN SLAY ME!? I HAVE HEALED FROM THEM ALREADY!"

Gabrielle spread both her arms wide, and Semyaza realized that some things were missing. The Fans, where were… realization and dread dawned upon him. The pain was still there, still in his…

With an audible click, Semyaza felt a familiar degree of pain like he had once long ago. The fans were not merely stings but had lodged themselves into his body, waiting for their command. He lost feelings below his chest and desperately attempted a scrambling grip on the bridge.

"I needed a way to stop you. This bridge has been a welcome boon, all things considered," Gabrielle said softly as her fans returned to her.

Semyaza howled in agony before dragging his weight forward. "THIS IS NOT THE END! I WILL RECOVER FROM THIS!"

His rage was such that any thoughts of love he may have had towards this human were gone, and he arched his shoulders to drag himself forward, intent on breaking this human in two.

Gabrielle, realizing what sort of situation she had just created, began to quickly backpedal, her speed just barely outpacing Semyaza's. Still even as she did so, she began to notice that his rage fueled movements were causing further damage to the bridge. She could use that, she would use that.

Watching each hand come down, she began to gauge the time between impact and pull, then saw it. As Semyaza raised its right hand once more, she threw her fans at the exposed palm. They cut deeply into the stone like flesh, and Semyaza lost balance, coming down harder than intended. The bridge buckled under the weight, and the spiderweb cracks that had been forming expanded greatly. When Semyaza attempted to pull himself forward again, she aimed at the opposite hand, causing the demon to fall hard again. This time, however, the bridge broke. Without his spine and lower body, Semyaza's chest dragged the demon down, and in a panic, his fingers dug deep into whatever remained that would give purchase.

"YOU! THINE PEOPLE! WE LOVED THEE!!!" Semyaza howled as his grip began to falter.

Gabrielle stared dispassionately for a moment before responding. "God commanded you to fall once before; now I command you to fall for all eternity." She threw her fans once again, and the two sliced through Semyaza's fingers. The demon reacted instinctively and let go of the bridge before falling into the void, screaming, its voice becoming increasingly distant.

She took several hoarse breaths as she looked at the destruction Semyaza had brought before the pain made itself known to her. She clutched at her and felt them move in ways they shouldn't have. Gritting her teeth, she took stock of her surroundings and saw something that gave her hope. Down and back, close to the place she and she and Zeke had entered, there was the path that led around to the portal. It would take some time longer than she would like, but she could still reach him that…

Her thoughts were interrupted as several lesser demons made themselves known. She snarled angrily before steeling herself and taking out her last vital star. Crushing it, she felt the pain in her chest recede and exhaustion fading.

"Come to battle over the remains? Typical, I could use the red orbs anyway." Gabrielle spat before charging the horde.

One way or another, she would return to Zeke's side.

******************************************

She lost count of how many she had slain, but she knew they were more nuisance than threats. She had made it to the entrance to the previous land before her fans found themselves buried in the neck of the last. It clawed at her arms in an attempt to free itself before she dragged the fans out. The demon's head fell softly as the greater broke down into orbs. It was done, no more stragglers to get in her wa…

She heard the door open behind her and saw two figures standing in the doorway. For a moment, she thought they were demons until she realized they weren't. Her mind was blank for the most recent battle, so much so that she hadn't even realized the keening sound her fans emanated. She heard one of them ask a question.

"Well, I didn't expect this. Who are you?"

*******************************************
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Well, I didn't expect this. Who are you?" Alex asked the woman, putting the boots back into his inventory and leaning casually on his umbrella, a vaguely charming smile on his face.

The figure was quiet momentarily before making quick closing motions with her hands. There was a sharp sound as two wicked-looking fans snapped shut. She placed them at her sides and calmly removed her helmet, revealing a red-eyed woman with black going-on silver hair staring at the two with dispassionate eyes. She glanced at the hole in the center of the room before taking a breath.

"So, Ivan's dead too… He should have stayed with us." She said with a small degree of sorrow underlining her voice.

Sol cocked an eyebrow and tightened his grip on Gevaudan. "I think my friend asked you a question."

Her eyes moved back to them. "Gabrielle, my name is Gabrielle. And may I ask yours?"

"My name's Alex. Currently, a kidnapped victim of whatever brought us here. If you would be so kind as to show us the exit, we're going to be on our way." He ended his spiel with a bow, half sardonic, half serious.

The way his hand—behind his back—gripped Calcabrina's hilt clearly indicated that the only reason he wasn't attacking right now was that he was still trying to understand the person in front of him.

"The name is Sol, and I've got a nearly identical story to his," Sol said, his hand slowly drifting down to Nymphaeum.

The woman smiled sadly. "I think the time for that has passed. You've already killed four of our own when all we've done is to do what we've been asked. We could have used them just as much as we could have used you to slay this demon. Don't you care? Doesn't that matter to you?" She asked before shaking her head.

"I can't be helped, I suppose. I can't let you go beyond this point. I've gone too far to allow two interlopers to stop us now." She turned away at that statement, looking past the white marble and pale expanse to a light in the far distance.

"I believe he's almost through, and then we can claim our freedom. Just a few more steps before the demon is slain."

"Wait, you really believe that?" Alex blurted out, blinking. "You aren't just paying lip service to it? You really believe that killing the demon that has brought us here with the power given to us by the very same demon is doable?"

The disbelief in his voice was both a mix of truth and a lie: he knew that they believed that, but it was such a good opening that he couldn't stop reusing it again and again. The lack of communication between the groups helped, and that was for sure.

"The demon is just gonna rip those powers from your bodies and then kill you. If removing the powers doesn't kill you first, anyway."

"You could always be lying. I've met enough people envious of life and with enough power to lie at every opportunity." She responded easily.

"But we're not." Sol began. "We've seen the shards, had them pulled from our very souls like invasive parasites. They're as real as the rest of this damned place! And you're just giving yourself to…"

"I don't care," Gabrielle said frostily. "I truly do not care. Where Zeke goes, I go!" She said, raising her voice before taking a quieter tone. "When chaos broke out among us when we were lost and confused, he saved my life; he showed us the way. I can't thank him in any truer way than by protecting him. I'll be his shield while he opens the way for as long as I can, even if I'm killed doing so."

"Way? What way!? There was never mention of a way!? You're just being used by that demon!" Sol shouted angrily.

There was a flash of uncertainty across her face as Gabrielle looked back towards the light in the distance before shaking her head. "Ways, demons… they're all the same when you really stop to look at it. Just obstacles between us and home."

She slipped the helmet back over her head.

"I'm going to help Zeke in every way I can. As long as I can repay that debt, I'll be fine with the consequences."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Something kinda special here. This is the first and only true interlude of this story, and we get to see the perspective of one of the Red Eyes. Gabrielle and the idea of this incredibly loyal warrior serving this... well, you'll all see, were fun as hell to write. Her fights and dialogue were the easiest to write and conceptualize. When we originally wrote and checked this part, the original version took a while, mostly due to trying to figure an older form of speech for Semyaza. Speaking of which, Semyaza's appearance actually came from the DMC 3 manga, as Vergil encountered several sealed demons bearing Angelic appearances distinct from the Fallen.

Obviously, the next chapter will pick up immediately after this, so stay tuned for the next battles. Enjoy, everyone!

 

[Atma]

Statue of Infinity

Items:

Blue Orb: 750 Red Orbs
Purple Orb: 1,750 Red Orbs
Gold Orb: 1,000 Red Orbs
Vital Star (S): 250 Red Orbs
Vital Star (M): 500 Red Orbs
Vital Star (L): 750 Red Orbs
Devil Star (S): 750 Red Orbs
Devil Star (M): 1,500 Red Orbs
Devil Star (L): 2,250 Red Orbs
Holy Star: 500 Red Orbs
Holy Water: 2000 Red Orbs
Untouchable: 3000 Red Orbs
Life-Saving Device (L): 25.000 Red Orbs

Personal Enhancement:

Demonic Strengthening (L) Strength: 500 Red Orbs (?)
Demonic Strengthening (L) Dexterity: 500 Red Orbs (?)
Demonic Strengthening (L) Charisma: 500 Red Orbs (?)
Basic Enhancement (Physical): 5,000 Red Orbs

• Advanced Enhancement (Physical): 25.000 Red Orbs
• Peak Enhancement (Physical): 50.000 Red Orbs

Basic Enhancement (Mystical): 5,000 Red Orbs

• Advanced Enhancement (Mystical): 25,000 Red Orbs
• Peak Enhancement (Mystical): 50,000 Red Orbs

Weapons:

Basic Wand: 100 Red Orbs
Basic Scepter: 150 Red Orbs
Basic Staff: 200 Red Orbs
Basic One Handed Melee Weapon: 250 Red Orbs
Basic Two-Handed Melee Weapon: 300 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Wand: 600 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Scepter: 650 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Staff: 700 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Handgun: 1,000 Red Orbs
Basic Enchanted Shotgun: 2,000 Red Orbs

Spells:

Enochian Magic Level 1 – Basic: 500 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 2 – Intermediate: 2,500 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 3 – Advanced: 5,000 Red Orbs
Enochian Magic Level 4 – Master: 10,000 Red Orbs

Magic Knowledge Level 1 – Basic: 500 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 2 – Intermediate: 5,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 3 – Advanced: 10,000 Red Orbs
Magic Knowledge Level 4 – Master: 20,000 Red Orbs
Bullet Spell: 250 Red Orbs

• Rapid Fire 1: 500 Red Orbs
  • Rapid Fire 2: 4.000 Red Orbs
    • Bullet Storm: 8.000 Red Orbs
• Double Bullet: 500 Red Orbs
• Charged Bullet 1: 600 Red Orbs
  • Charged Bullet 2: 2.700 Red Orbs
    • Bomb Bullet: 9.000 Red Orbs
• Elemental Infusion: 10.000 Red Orbs

Barrier Spell: 500 Red Orbs

• Full Barrier: 2.500 Red Orbs
• Strengthened Barrier 1: 2.000 Red Orbs
  • Strengthened Barrier: 2: 8.000 Red Orbs
    • Castle of Stone: 16.000 Red Orbs

Beam Spell: 500 Red Orbs

• Empowered Beam 1: 2.000 Red Orbs
  • Empowered Beam 2: 6.000 Red Orbs
    • Laser Beam: 12.000 Red Orbs
• Elemental Infusion: 10.000 Red Orbs

Abilities:

Stinger: 1,500 Red Orbs
Air Hike: 2,000 Red Orbs – Use Demonic Energy for a double jump
Enemy Step: 3,000 Red Orbs – Use enemies as a platform for a higher double jump
Table Hopper: 4,500 Red Orbs – A dodge that shifts the user behind their enemy
Trigger Heart: 7,500 Red Orbs – Reduce the rate of magical use

Hybridization

Imperfect Hybridization (Demonic Body Parts Required): 75,000 Red Orbs
Perfect Hybridization (Demonic Body Parts Required): 100,00 Red Orbs/ (No Body Parts Required) 25,000 Red Orbs
Hybrid Power Enhancement: 250,000 Red Orbs
Greater Hybrid Power Enhancement: 500,00 Red Orbs

Miscellaneous

Care Package A: 200 Red Orbs – A set of sturdy clothes for use in battle
Care Package B: 300 Red Orbs – A pack of generic food rations
Care Package C: 400 Red Orbs – A set of basic first-aid supplies
Care Package D: 600 Red Orbs – A set of armor from an earlier time.

 

[Atma]

Gates of Hell Shop

Devil Arms:

Devil Arms Basic Type: These pieces right here are standard fare for low ranking demons. Easy to make, and not important enough to matter if bought and sold. Only thing is, these weapons are more quantity than quality. So even though they'll hit harder than anything in the human world, don't expect them to hold a candle to more legitimate devil arms.

• Devil Arm – Basic Type A (Marionette Dagger): 1000 CP
• Devil Arm – Basic Type B (Finis Sword): 1000 CP
• Devil Amr – Basic Type C (Hell Pride Scythe): 1000 CP
• Devil Arm – Basic Type D (Scarecrow Axe): 1000 CP

Nidhogg: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Whip, Health Drain on Hit

Geryon: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Time Altering Lance

Malphas: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Demonic Magic Staff

Vendetta: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Sword claimed to have been forged from a fragment of Death's Scythe

Nightmare Gamma: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Demonic gun fueled by magic energy

Angel Arms

Angel Arms Basic Type: It's not what you'd usually find down here, but there's always a market for what the other side is using. These babies are some of the basic arms of the forces of Paradiso. But watch yourself. The energies of this place don't play well with 'em, so unlike the devil arms here, they'll eventually break on ya. But if you want something that'll last, you'll have to pay a premium, ya dig?

• Angel Arm – Basic Type A (Spear): 2000 Red Orbs
• Angel Arm – Basic Type B (Sword): 2000 Red Orbs
• Angel Arm – Basic Type C (Channeling Staff): 2000 Red Orbs
• Angel Arm – Basic Type D (Breaker Wheel): 2000 Red Orbs

Infinite Circuit: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Golden Rings that can mimic basic angel arms

Longinus: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Spear used by Lumen Sages

Elysium: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Bladed shield that can be used like a whip

Madonna: 10,000 Red Orbs

• Heavenly Mace with the image of the Virgin Mother

Please note, that a lot of these items were created early on to create a baseline of what we wanted to work off of. As seen in previous chapters, the Punks absolutely purchased some of these weapons for their own personal use.

 

[Atma]

Alex Skills:

• Calcabrina (Combined Form)

  • Float (Keeping the umbrella open will slow down any fall to a gentle float) - 2.500 Red OrbsBought
    • Levitate (As long as the Umbrella is open, the weight of the user is reduced to almost nothing. Higher jump, can walk on fragile and liquid surfaces) - Require Float,5.000 Red OrbsBought
      • Fly (Glide/flight for a short distance with directional momentum chosen at the start of the movement) - Require Levitate, 10.000 Red Orbs Bought

• Calca (Sheath)

  • Rainproof (Require Barrier) (Strengthen the Barrier and extend it beyond the Umbrella's edge) - 5.000 Red OrbsBought
    • Waterproof (Require Rainproof) (Barrier is strengthened and extended more) - 15.000 Red Orbs Bought

• Brina (Sword)

  • Running Stitch (The tip of the sword is charged with magical energy and, on hit, releases a thin beam of energy in the enemy) - 8.000 Red Orbs Bought

• Seraphim

  • Sing! (Basic attack)(An area attack that uses sonic waves to hit everyone around the user. Short range.)
    • Contralto (The Sing! Attack rises in power and pitch, shattering hard materials and flying back the enemies around the user) - 7.500 Red Orbs Bought

• Geryon Hybrid Powers

  • Blink (Move from one place to another without any time in between. Limited to five seconds of movements, only places that are physically accessible): 7.500 Red Orbs - Bought
  • Time Bubble (Create a bubble of slowed time in front of you that lasts for three seconds): 15.000 Red Orbs - Bought

• Devil Trigger Techniques

  • Calcabrina
    • Geryon-Iai, First Chime: Cutting Between the Seconds (The cut is done between moments, making it basically unavoidable as long as the victim is in range of Alex. Doesn't extend his range, but grants the use of Blink to move before striking) Already owned
    • Geryon-Iai, Second Chime: Heavy Blade of Times Past (The incredible amount of possibilities of cutting in his range turns Calcabrina into what looks like a greatsword. The cut is repeated innumerable times once it hits.) Already Owned
  • Seraphim
    • Sing, O Muse, of the Rage of Achilles! (The feathers detach and vibrate, turning into a storm of sonic lances that shoot toward the enemy) Already Owned

 

[Atma]

Sol Techniques

• Air Hike

• Stinger

• Basic Physical Enhancement x2

Sol Weapons

• Gevaudan (Sword State)

  • Rush Cut (5,000 Red Orbs) – Sol rushes forward, performing a wide two-handed horizontal slash BOUGHT
    • Beat Cut (15,000 Red Orbs) – Upon completion of the first slash, Sol can perform two more slashes for devastating effect. BOUGHT
      • Thriller (20,000 Red Orbs) – The final version of this attack, Sol unleashes a devastating series of slashes at a target. BOUGHT
        • Breakaton (30,00 Red Orbs, Requires Thriller) – A finishing downward strike that is meant to shatter armor or hard skin/scales. BOUGHT

• Gevaudan (Whip State)

  • Dragline (5,000 Red Orbs) – Allows Gevaudan's whip form to extend to greater lengths than physically possible. BOUGHT
    • Constriction (10,000 Red Orbs) (Dragline Required) – Allow the whip to wrap around foes, holding them in place for a brief period. BOUGHT

• Vendetta

  • NO SKILLS

• Geryon B

  • Time Step (10,000 Red Orbs) – Sol can use the inherent time-altering nature of the demon-infused armor to extend a dodge by a second or two. BOUGHT

• Demon Arm

  • Abyssal Punch (20,000 Red Orbs) – Sol can channel the demonic energy in his left arm to unleash a devastating blow. BOUGHT

 

[Atma]

"So, she's the dragon," Alex muttered, already unsheathing his blade while the woman in armor in front of him snapped open her fans.

GABRIELLE: SERAPHIC SHIELD​

"Well, if you aren't going to listen to us about the demon paras-" Alex had to raise his umbrella, stopping the kick that Gabrielle had tried to squash his head with, moving from one side of the room to the other. After that, his sword intercepted the fan coming down before he pushed her away.

Sol attempted to use Gevaudan's whip to capitalize on Gabrielle's opening, but only for her leg to close on the bone blade, dragging Sol forward. She followed with a sharp knee that Sol was forced to block from. The defended blow sent Sol flying backward. Rolling into a crouched position, Sol's hands began to tremble from the force of the blows.

"What the hell was that?" He asked more to himself than anyone else.

In the meantime, Alex snapped his sword in a thrust towards her before opening the umbrella, obscuring his form for a moment. When she brought her heel down on where Alex would be, she found out that he was holding a staff sideways, stopping the attack cold.

"Sing." His command was sharp and short before a wall of sound and vibration hit her straight in the middle and sent her backward, a short cry escaping her lips.

Gabrielle flew back towards the entrance of the Heavenly Parody. Falling head over heel, she had enough wherewithal and time to recover before Sol had closed the distance.

"Abyssal Pau…!!" Sol was cut off as Gabrielle shifted herself beneath his outstretched arm and grabbed it. Using Sol's Momentum, she spun and forced her weight into the second hybrid, carrying the both of them past the platform and below to the area she had avoided earlier.

Sol released a sharp air gasp as he felt the hard surface and wildly punched at Gabrielle's sides. He heard her grunt from pain before she rolled off him and kicked him away.

Alex didn't even wait, throwing himself off the platform and storing Seraphim back in his inventory. Calcabrina was thrown towards the duo.

"Grab it!" His voice barely reached Sol's ears before a bullet made of energy slammed against Gabrielle's form.

Sol grabbed the umbrella and felt his momentum arrest before making the mistake of looking down.

"Ohhh shit, there's nothing down there!" He yelled.

Gabrielle, on the other hand, had recovered on her own, her wing flaring out and pushing towards the nearest place of solid ground. She took several breaths before clutching her sides.

"Those demons must have… dammit." She hissed in pain. Calming herself, she retracted her wing and began to scan for the other two hybrids.

"Searching for someone?!" The shout came from behind her before a beam of energy slammed against her. The two hybrids were hovering in mid-air, the canopy of the umbrella open, Alex having charged the beam and shot before shouting.

He was dramatic, not stupid.

Gabrielle took the blast head-on and rolled off the ledge, disappearing from sight. However, there was something in the air. Truthfully, it was two somethings. The sounds that drew the two to the entrance had returned with a vengeance as the two fans began to arc toward Alex and Sol.

"Oh crap!" Sol shouted before raising Nymphaeum and firing. The blast hit one of the fans, blasting it back but only halting its movements.

"The other one! The other one!" Sol called out in warning.

Alex changed Calcabrina to Seraphim before a veritable wall of sound slammed against the whirling fan. The sustained vibrations stopped the weapons and kept them still for a moment. However, neither of them were overpowering the other.

"Shoot it down!"

With a grunt, Sol aimed Nymphaeum again and fired upon the remaining fan. The blasts did bring the fan down, much to his joy, and he watched it clatter to the ground near the other one uselessly.

That was the moment when Alex's body was sent flying forward towards the edge of the platform while Gabrielle landed in a roll, snatching the two fans from the ground and turning towards Sol. His eyes were initially drawn to her blood-splattered heels, where she had struck Alex before his sight traveled upwards to meet hers.

Sol charged forward, unleashing Gevaudan against her. Gabrielle weaved herself around the whip easily until Sol jerked his arm back. Gabrielle quickly found her left arm wrapped in the bone segments and hissed as the blades bite through her armor and into her skin.

"No cheap strikes now!" Sol shouted before pulling her in. Gabrielle used the fan in her right hand to strike Sol, who used Nymphaeum to block the strike. The two strained against each other before Sol dropped Nymphaeum and shouted, "Infernal Punch!"

While she had brought her elbow down to parry the strike, the punch had managed to graze her. The force was enough to dent her side plate and elbow guard, respectively. With a sharp gasp, Gabrielle kicked Sol away, forcefully unwinding Gevauden from her arm in the process. Alexander, in the meantime, had managed to recover enough that he grabbed his weapon and shot back upwards as fast as he could, already worrying about Sol.

In the meantime, Gabrielle was panting, keeping her distance from Sol, before she gripped her arm and twisted it back in place.

"I need to get back to Zeke." Her voice was still calm, even in her condition. Her two fans spun through the air like buzz saws before she grabbed them. "And you are not going to block me." She continued as demonic energy started rising around her, her eyes shining red.

Her wing unfurled itself and seemed to grow as the energy grew in size and ferocity. A smaller wing on the opposing wing soon joined it. Then… then the energy collapsed down upon her, weaving its way into the armor and deeper into her body. Her armor began to visibly change, becoming more organic and lighter in color until what stood before the two was something that could only be described as angelic.

"His wishes, his goals are all that matters. All else will scatter to the winds." Gabrielle stated a matter of factly, her voice roiling with power.

Alexander saw the blast of demonic energy coming from above him and put on a burst of speed: he needed to reach them before something deadly happened. Sol wasn't allowed to die!

Sol was rooted to the spot, horrified and in awe of the power he was feeling from the transformation, and only barely reacting in time. Banishing Gevauden, he brought forth Vendetta and hastily brought it in front of him. He tried blocking the blast of demonic energy, but he was only partially successful, as the force sent him screaming back and nearly over the edge. Banishing Vendetta, he clawed at the edge to keep himself from falling to the void below; all the while, Gabrielle slowly approached.

"You won't be the first I cast down. There was a Fallen in this land before. You'll join him sooner or later."

Sol didn't respond as he was too focused on pulling himself up to respond. From behind, Alexander shot upwards, a parabolic arc that put him on a collision course against Gabrielle. His face showed fear. Terror, really, then anger, then fury. And then it showed nothing else; as a helmet appeared, Alex transitioned into his Devil Trigger state all at once, faster than he ever had.

Gabrielle stiffened just as she was about to step on one of Sol's hands and turned to face Alex. "You too? No matter, I'll end this quickly."

"No, you won't." Alexander's voice was cold as the void of space before he somersaulted off his weapon, hand grabbing the handle.

"Geryon-Iai, Second Chime, Heavy Blade of Times Past." It wasn't a series of movements. Not even a stance or two.

It was a single, unbroken movement from a position that shouldn't have worked against an enemy that had seen him coming. Still, the attack moved forward, time stopping and aggregating around the blade, turning it into a heavy mass of 'cutting' that would rend Gabrielle in pieces.

Gabrielle dodged, barely.

With a sickening sound, her wing fell away from her body, and Alexander landed on his feet, sliding backward. There was a breath stillness for what seemed like a far longer period of time than it had right to, followed by a shrill scream. In a moment of fury, Gabrielle clawed at the stump where one of her wings was.

"Damn you, Damn YOU!" She hissed at Alex with more venom than was expected of the stoic second in command.

Without another word, she charged at Alex, fans keening all the while.

Alex answered in kind, sheath in one hand, blade in the other. The air between them was soon filled with the sound of blades clashing against each other, energy discharged, and two bodies doing their best to destroy each other.

Sol kept trying to pull himself up over the ledge as the battle raged on.

"Come on… come on… I can't die here!" He bit out as he tried to climb. The feeling of nothingness beneath him was adding more to an ever-growing anxiety that was threatening to consume him. He could hear and see the battle and knew he had to be there, if only… That was it!

He tried his best to secure a grip before searching out the familiar feeling, that steady hum of energy.

"I know you're there; just give me that power now!" Sol hissed as he dug deeper. It was like the beginnings of fire waiting to be coaxed in a desperate cold. He could feel it awakening and traveling into his arm, and he forced the power down into the palm of his hand. The sudden rush of demonic energy sent Sol flying in the air. The power leveled out and suffused his body like it had before, and as he fell, Vendetta returned.

"Come On!"

Alex, in the meantime, was furiously fighting for his life. It was easy to say that she was the hardest fighter he had encountered during his time here. The demons that he had met until now didn't even compare. The only reason he was able to gain an advantage in their fight was that he had two weapons on her single one.

With a kick to the ground, he jumped upwards and avoided a slash from her, only to have to defend against her remaining wing, Calcabrina's canopy opening and hiding him from view. The impact sent him flying upwards, which Gabrielle used to her advantage, her razor-sharp fans cutting the air like circular saws, searching to cut Alex to ribbons. In the middle of trying to reorient himself, Alex changed weapons, bringing Seraphim out. At that, the armor around him changed with a flash, now thinner, but he had a coat of feathers down his back, the wings of this form closed, for now.

"Sing!" A sphere of vibrations exploded from his form, sending the fans flying backward before the sound expanded, slamming against Gabrielle faster than she could answer.

As the attack hit Gabrielle, a dark blur slammed into her back. There was a shriek of steel and scale as Gabrielle was cast down from the attack. Sol crashed to the ground shortly after that but managed to recover, banishing Vendetta and summoning Gevaudan and Nymphaeum back.

"Let's even the odds, shall we?" Sol said while brandishing his weapon and stepping in a way to get between her and Alex.

Gabrielle wordlessly rose and rolled her shoulders. The stump of her larger wing twitched painfully, and with a grunt, the lesser wing seemed to grow slightly longer. Not enough to be used as a weapon or mode of flight, but possibly for different reasons. It twitched, quickly flung itself wide, and snapped back to its previous position.

She opened her fan and charged. Sol met her charge and swung down with Gevauden, only for that wing to snap out, pushing the blade away. While Sol managed to block the fan with Nymphaeum's barrels, her now free hand wrapped itself around his throat. With a grunt, Sol closed the distance between the two and kicked off the ground, throwing his full weight on top of her. He rolled and kicked up.

"Alex!" He gasped out.

"Sing, O Muse, of the rage of Achilles!" At his call, the feathers of his cloak fluffed up, opening to show the metallic-looking wings, before a cloud of razor-sharp feathers shot all around him.

Around each feather, a shell made of sound formed, turning into javelins in a mere moment. After that, the deadly shower fell, the vibration splitting the air, the bronze-colored feathers inside their shell of vibrations powerful enough to reduce stone to dust. They fell like a deadly, shining rain.

Straight towards Gabrielle.

There was a moment that could only be seen by those within the throes of the battle, where it appeared that Gabrielle attempted to block with her fan and wing. It was as fleeting as the sands in an hourglass. The Javelin Rain hammered into her, driving her from the sky and deep into the platform with a bloodcurdling scream.

"Is it over?" Sol asked Alex, only for a noise to answer the question for him.

The sound of broken, shifting marble made it clear it wasn't. Gabrielle was still alive. Pulling herself from the imprint, her once angelic appearance was tarnished and rent. Her remaining wing hung by only the barest shreds of muscle. What areas of her body were readily visible were blackened, and those that weren't were weeping rivers of blood. A harsh, wheezing noise emanated from her form.

"It's not… finished… not yet!" She gasped out while struggling to a standing position.

Sol shook his head and sighed before holstering Nymphaeum and approaching her. The rage was fading, and in its place was pity.

"I… have to go! I have to be there! Be his… shield!" Gabrielle stated while trying to raise her arms.

"I'm sorry," Sol began. "But we can't let you do that. Demon's Dance!" He roared before charging. Whether it was the last dregs of adrenaline allowing her movement or the potential she carried, she managed to block the first two strikes of Demon's Dance. Unfortunately for her, she wasn't able to block all the strikes. Each time Gevauden struck, a flash of blood arced freely. Fifteen times did Gabrielle feel the bite of the Demon's Dance, with the last being a piercing strike. She fell forward onto Sol's shoulder, her grip only momentarily like iron before slipping off his form.

Sol stumbled backward and collapsed to the ground, his form reverting to its usual state.

"You… you okay?" He asked Alex.

The hybrid, still in his Devil Trigger form, only cocked his head to the side before moving toward the rapidly cooling corpse. While the transformation was vanishing into a swirl of bronze feathers, he bent down and grabbed the fans.

When he turned back towards Sol, his eyes were suspiciously shiny. "I'm… I will be fine. Once this is done."

The fans in his hands opened and closed a couple of times before Alex sighed. "We need to find a portal to the Gates of Hell. Do you have any idea where it would be?"

Sol looked around the platform critically for the first time. The void seemed to stretch out forever, but there were paths leading to and fro throughout it.

Sol responded with a weary note in his voice. "No, but if I were to guess, I'd say near a Divinity Statue. Problem is… where is one?"

"That's a good question. And… Wait. Do you hear that?" Alex turned his head towards the platform's edge a moment before a hand made of stone-like flesh grabbed the edges, slowly dragging up something… or someone.

Inch by inch, a ruined form appeared from the platform's edge, arching wings flapping slowly, trying to keep the… body or what remained afloat.

The form shook with fury… until its sight landed on Gabrielle's corpse, which exploded into a firework of red orbs, the deluge of which dividing itself between the duo.

"HUBRIS WAS PRESENT IN ALL OF US. THOU SHOULD HAVE REALIZED THAT WHEN THINE ANCESTORS WERE CAST OUT FROM THE GARDEN." The stone-like being started before it turned to Alex and Sol and pulled itself further upon the platform.

"TWO MORE THIEVES ENTER THIS PARODIC LAND. THIEVES THOU ART, YET UNBOUND BY CHAINS OF DECEIT. WOULD THOU PERHAPS BE WILLING TO TREAT WITH THEE?"

Alex blinked. "You are dying. I can… feel it. Your time is coming to an end." Alex moved forward a bit before the giant angel-shaped demon dragged himself fully onto the platform. Not that there was a lot of drag, considering that his lower body was… not there. Anymore.

"I'm willing to listen to what you have to say before deciding. First, who are you?"

"I WAS ONCE CALLED TEACHER AND LOVER OF THINE ANCESTORS BEFORE THE GREAT DELUGE. THOU WOULDST KNOWETH ME BETTER AS WATCHER." The stone-like demon stated easily and with no small degree of pride.

"A Grigori? That's… surprising. Didn't YHVH…"

And when Alex pronounced that, the very air around him vibrated, the stone under his feet cracking and splintering from it. It also made him start to bleed from his eyes, ears, and nose.

"SPEAK NOT THAT NAME, LEST YEE DRAW THE IRE OF HE WHO SPEAKS WITH HIS VOICE! THOU KNOWETH HIM WELL ENOUGH." The stone-like demon called out.

"Yeah, sorry. Slipped out. Anyway, you… are currently dying. What do you want from us?" Alex asked, carefully taking a step to the side from his previous position, leaving the scorched and cracked pavement to his side.

"I doubt it is that girl's head, considering she's already dead."

"IT WOULD HAVE IF SHE WERE STILL AMONG THE LIVING. YET THE CORPSE OF A BETRAYED HEART MEANS LITTLE."

"Did… was she the one that did all that damage." Sol finally asked.

"THE ANSWER SHOULD BE PLAIN TO THEE."

"Well, that's a shame. You must have been rather grand when at full power." Alex's words were sort of careless… In the sense that they weren't careless at all. And still, he was waiting to hear what the Grigori wanted.

Mostly because he wanted to satiate his curiosity before he died.

"I HAVE LOST HALF OF MYSELF TO THE VOID ABOVE AND BELOW, MINE REVENGE HATH BEEN STOLEN FROM ME, AND MINE HEAVENLY FORM RUINED. I SHALL NOT DENIGRATE MYSELF TO BE AS BASE AS THE SERPENT'S SPAWN. EVEN NOW, I FEEL MINE FLESH CRACK AND BREAK. THOU MAY SLAY THEE QUICKLY. ALL THAT I ASK IS FOR THEE TO PIERCE HER LOVE'S HEART, A LAST VENDETTA FROM ONE WHO WOULD HAVE LOVED HER MORE."

"Oh, we will. But I have a suggestion: Are you willing to entertain me for a moment more?" Alex smiled, his hair fluttering behind him. He took a few steps forward until he was near Semyaza.

"I feel as though far too gone towards the demon side, hybrid as I am. And I understand that. But I have a way for you to survive and even heal. Along with witnessing your vendetta personally." A close-lipped smile.

"Turn into a Devil Arm. I will not brandish you; it will be him who will keep you. He's far more human than I am. You can see your vengeance with your own being. Both of Gabrielle's lover and the demon that created this place." Alex waved his hand in a meaningless motion to emphasize what he was saying.

"So, what do you say?"

"TO BE AMONG MANKIND ONCE MORE? I ACCEPT." Semyaza declared before his stone-like form collapsed in on itself, creating an orb of pale white light before gently drifting Sol. The moment it came near enough, it enveloped his hands before coalescing into two pale gauntlets with golden gems set into the tops of each. Sol clenched his hands experimentally before throwing some jabs.

"You may not pierce the heart, but I can rip the heart out with these," Sol stated, feeling a sense of content in response.

Alex clapped in admiration. "Congrats on your new companion. Now we just need to find a way to Rodin, and we can finally complete our arsenal…" The hybrid stopped for a moment before facepalming.

"I'm talking like we are in a video game… Which, kinda, but still. We don't have a redo." He turned and looked around, trying to see if there was a way to go up, a door, or even a secret room.

Sol, still gazing at the gauntlets, chuckles, "Well, like any game, if we're not winning, we're not cheating hard enough. I guess an overabundance of weapons and powers counts as such."

He looked at the area around him. "This place is like a maze, isn't it? And knowing our luck, they just had to destroy the bridge, didn't they."

Alex nodded before sighing. "This is going to wipe me out, but it's the fastest way and also the best way for us to get out of here, so…" He turned towards Sol.

"Hop on." Calcabrina hovering at his side, a grin etched on his face.

Sol just wordlessly nodded and gripped Calcabrina, keeping his eyes shut as he did so.

"Calm down, I'm going to go easy on you. Ready?" Alex sat on Calcabrina alongside Sol before pointing upwards to where they had come from. "We're going to the maximum speed. I want to reach the platform as soon as possible. Three, two, one…"

The umbrella shot upwards, far faster than before, leaving behind a small vortex of wind.

If Sol's grip wasn't like iron, it sure was now, as he unconsciously screamed in fright.

**************************

The top platform was half-destroyed, but there was enough space for both of them to land without having to stay glued to one another. With a flex of his wrist, Alex stored Calcabrina away before taking a couple of steps towards the bridge - part of the bridge, anyway - and trying to see what was beyond it.

"Let's hope there's a Gate to hell somewhere near here." The hybrid muttered under his breath, searching around for any hint of red light.

"Oh sweet, beautiful ground, your wisdom is most absolute," Sol muttered as he collapsed forward.

Turning his head to Alex, "Your Umbrella is crazy. Has anyone told you that?"

"No, but thanks." He answered absentmindedly, probably not even having heard him. Or registered his words.

"Do you see anything useful? A door, a portal, a demon?"

Sol looked around briefly. Their current location seemed like a relatively flat platform with staircases leading to… incorrect directions. Some were upside down and aimed skyward, others seemed to form from the sides and went nowhere, while a rare few actually did lead to other platforms on both higher and lower levels. At the foot of one of these staircases, Sol saw a hint of red light.

He pointed at it before saying, "I think Lady Luck might just be smiling on us right now."

"Eh, I'll take all the luck we can get. Good eyes." Alex praised Sol with a smile before starting to walk towards the platform.

"Do you think we're going to get attacked by some demons before we can enter? I mean, it's been a while since we saw some. Or do you think that the presence of Gabrielle and her beau have sent every one of them running?"

"Considering the bodies surrounding her, I think she killed a good majority of the ones that were here. If they wouldn't try to kill us the first chance they got, I'd actually thank them. They probably wore her down a bit." Sol said grimly before looking at the portal.

"Well, shall we?"

"Sure." And, with a jump, Alex threw himself into the glowing circle on the ground, vanishing into a flash of energy.

With a shrug, Sol followed suit.

As he fell through, he looked at the bar and its owner. "Sir, do we have some stuff for you today."

Rodin looked at the two before he turned to look at the bar. A bar that was… far more busy than before. On the left, as far as possible from the others, there were the kids from the school that Sol and Alex had met at the Mall, looking rather scared but also like they were taking a breath of fresh air. Mingling around the right side, the punks, and the college guys were chatting and exchanging stories, the students looking rather impressed by the scars that the punks had on them.

Then, the tall black man turned back towards Sol and Alex. "More people? I don't think this bar has been this full since… ever."

"Well, good bar patrons try to spread the word if they find a place they like. Speaking of which, we got some new things for you." Sol said while gesturing to Alex and making sure to show off Semyaza.

Alex smirked and took out both the boots and the fans, the two weapons resonating with one another.

"You managed to get your hands on both of them? Congratulations, it's been… a while since they were used together. As for you…" Rodin blinked when he actually looked at the weapon in Sol's hands.

"A Grigori… It's been ages since I've seen one of them. In that form, even. Do you know the name? Kokabiel, Gadreel, maybe Af?"

"He introduced himself as Semyaza. He had been left for dead by one of the Red Eyes, and we killed her before he could get her back." Sol said, feeling the gauntlets heat up at the mention of Gabrielle.

He continued, "Semyaza wanted to get revenge on her and figured the best way was to do it vicariously by killing the man she loved or… maybe wanted to protect. That's how I got these."

Rodin's glasses had slid down enough that everyone in the room could see his eyes. "You got the king of the Grigori with you? That's impressive, kid. More than you know."

"I… I guess so. I'll be sure to put him to good use." Sol said contemplatively before looking at Alex. "I think my friend here has just completed a set you mentioned earlier."

"Yeah. Here you go. Can you fine-tune them?" Alex placed the fans and boots in front of Rodin, who grabbed them and started checking them over.

"They haven't got a good scrubbing since the black plague. Let me work my magic. You want a bit of work on that, too, kid? Buff out the cracks?" The barman nodded at the gauntlets around Sol's hands, his expression impossible to really understand.

"You know what? Go for it." Sol began before getting a coy look. "Hey, those parasites you ripped out of us. Could you feed them to our new acquisitions? As a little 'fuck you' to the bastard that put us here." Sol finished.

Rodin grinned. "You've read my mind. Give me a couple of hours, and you'll see what I got for you." And, with that, he vanished into a red glowing circle.

"Well," Sol began, "I guess we can take the time to plan what we do next."

"Yeah. I wonder if Rodin knows where we can find a statue." Alex leaned against the counter, a glass of some drink that the fallen angel had left there for them held in his fingers.

"We're entering the endgame now."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Third Devil Arm has been acquired for both of the main characters, and with that, we have officially moved into the endgame. There are only four chapters left, with an epilogue following thereafter. This is a very exciting moment, and the next chapter will, in a way, re-introduce us to an old friend.

Enjoy everyone.

 

[Atma]

Sol took a moment to register those words and sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right… Kinda weird when you think of it. Home… at least what'll pass for now anyway isn't that far off."

"Assuming we can return, anyway." Alex blithely answered the unspoken question that Sol didn't ask. Right after that, he drank the entire glass in a single, unbroken sip, his head thrown back, his hair moving like liquid metal for a moment.

"If we end this with some Red Orbs remaining, do you think that we can exchange them for money somewhere?"

"Oh, I hope so because I don't think our IDs could easily pass for trans-dimensional passports or records. Maybe pay for a boat charter… To get to Fortuna Island. There could be plenty of research notes that could help us." Sol said while tapping a sharp nail against the bar.

He'd occasionally go to snap his fingers upon an idea but realizing how close they were and the state of his arm…

"We'll have to take the time to figure out illusions, or however Sparda and the more humanoid demons concealed their true selves," Sol said.

"I guess. Maybe the Statue can help. As for traveling through dimensions… Well, there's a chance. Depending on how close to the end we get out of this fucked up dimension." Alex hummed a bit, the tip of his fingers lighting up momentarily.

"How much of a chance do you want to take?" Alex asked.

"About as much as you will, I guess. It'd be funny, right we set up an entire ritualistic thing and find ourselves in the weirdest of places?" Sol stated, stifling a laugh while reaching for his drink.

"Like, here we are, nascent badasses who have been killing demons left, right, and center, and we show up in something like a Saturday morning cartoon with a gimmick or something."

Sol laughed once again before finishing, "Be nice change of pace, considering…"

"I mean, as long as it's not one of those… stupid ones, like… Teen Titans Go or something like that, I'm fine with it. As long as we don't provoke Bugs Bunny or anything. It wouldn't end well for us, really." Alex chuckled at his own sentence, clearly imagining the scene.

"We don't talk about 'Go'," Sol says with a shudder. "It's like the Highlander Sequels or Third Birthday. It doesn't exist."

And then suddenly, a thought occurred to Sol. "You don't suppose that that would ring true for anime, would you? I mean, here we are, having a drink in a bar called 'Gates of Hell' while a Fallen angel bartender… and, oh wow, I think I answered my own question."

Alex just smirked before tapping the counter with his fingers.

"Look. After the duel between Dante and Vergil, when Nero recovers his arm, the dimensional barrier splits open when Yamato shatters, and a shard cuts it open. If we throw ourselves in the gap, I can use magic to whisk us away from here." The hybrid stopped momentarily before moving his hand in a meaningless movement to have something to do.

"Problem is, we're going to go forward blind. No idea where we'll land. Like that old saying in my country: Se lasci la strada vecchia per quella nuova, si sa quel che si lascia e non si sa quel che si trova."

Then he stopped talking in Italian and translated. "Or, in a way that you can understand: 'If you leave the old road for the new, you know what you're leaving behind, not what you're going to find."

"Hmmm, can't disagree with that. It's a start, at the very least, and if it is a good start, then that's half the work done for us." Sol responded.

"Ah. Well, something will come out of it, I'm sure. I'll start working on it and see what I can come up with." Having said that, he nodded at Sol and moved to another table, starting to sketch something on some paper he had pilfered from behind the counter.

*******************************************

Sometime later, tell-tale sounds of Rodin's reappearance made itself known. While most of the bar patrons merely glanced at the bar before returning to their conversations, Alex and Sol were focused on what was delivered.

"So, for our little hybrid here, here's your new armaments: Laughing Kookaburra and Great Butcherbird." Rodin put the pair of boots and the pair of fans in front of the long-haired guy.

"Newly forged, their bond renewed again, never to be separated. Once you wear them, you'll also get armor even when not in Devil Trigger, so that's going to be a nice piece of protection. The heels are sharper than a barber's razor, and the same goes for the edges of the fans. Can dispel minor magics and, when they have built enough resonance together - you'll know when they are ready - you are going to be able to break barriers in front of you, be it magical or physical."

Without waiting, Alex took the pair of boots and the fans and equipped them through the inventory band that Rodin himself had given them however many days ago. The boots were kind of feminine, but, as he soon discovered, he could retract the heel via a sharp push downwards. Every time the fans cut through the air, a gust of air followed them, and soon, the tablecloths started to flutter away.

Alex stopped and smiled, showing his teeth, before letting the fan hang from his wrists. "They fit perfectly. You do an excellent job, as always, Rodin."

"That I do," Rodin said proudly before placing a familiar pair of gauntlets on the bar.

"Those didn't need too much work, but that parasite you gave me? That added something special to them. They'll drain demonic energy from anything you hit, so that'll be a nasty surprise." Rodin said with a knowing smirk.

If Sol could whistle, he would have, but all he could do was raise his eyebrows.

"That would make using these abilities much more economic." He said before slipping the gauntlets on and feeling them fit themselves more securely over his arms.

Sol balled his fists several times before giving Alex a thumbs up. "I know we've said it a lot, but thank you for all this. I don't think we'd be alive by this point without your help."

"Yeah, what he said. I can see why Bayonetta relies on you so much." Alex said before freezing.

Rodin stopped before looking at the two of them. "So, you know about Bayonetta? Heard of her around?" His voice was rather… airy. Something that had never been once in all their encounters.

"One of the Red Eyes complained about her and your weapons earlier, the former owner of the boots. She said something along the lines about how they made things more difficult and less fun." Sol said quickly.

He continued, "Granted, this was all coming from a woman obsessed with vampire literature and who acted like a faster slasher villain with a pair of sin scissors, so take that for a grain of salt."

Rodin looked at both Alex and Sol for another interminable moment before shrugging. "Sure. I'll believe you. Now, do you want anything else?"

"Tequila sunrise, if it's possible." Alex flopped down on the stool in front of the counter before looking up at Rodin. "And if you know the nearest location of a Divinity Statue, I would be grateful."

"I'll take another Gin and Tonic on the rocks, and yeah, the same location info. We're close I think, just a little while longer and we can end this." Sol said shortly after.

Rodin looked down at the duo before he lowered his sunglasses by a fraction. When he spoke, his voice dropped an octave, and the air reverberated with his words. Alex's back also shivered, but for another reason entirely that had nothing to do with the fallen angel's power. Well, mostly nothing to do.

"I'm going to forget what you two said about my friend. However, if I find out that you have any involvement in hurting her, you are going to see why I'm undisturbed and can play at being a barman, understood?"

The hint of red glow coming from his eyes underscored the threat perfectly.

"Holy shit, you have no idea how hot you are right now." Alex's mouth ran faster than his thoughts, and before he waved his hands, an apologetic expression was on his face.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm more impulsive than before. No plans on hurting her or anyone else she may have at heart, I swear."

Sol choked for a moment before laughing, "We're good. No intention of harming any patrons here." That brief moment of levity drained any tension from him.

"Forgive my friend, all the changes, he's right. Just trying to get used to things and uh, the idea of the end being within grasp, you know how it is." Sol said, trying to wave anything off.

Rodin just stared at the duo for a few moments before he finally stopped hovering menacingly and turned to grab the bottles he needed to make their drinks.

"Good. As for the Statue, I don't know where you can find one." Dry as a desert, although with what sounded like a little bit of humor.

And then, two glasses were put in front of them.

Sol raised his glass to Rodin and Alex before drinking some of it. Putting the glass down on the bar, he mused, "Then I guess we'll have to find that out on our own and log it down for the future."

Sol took another sip before asking a contemplative question. "Rodin, sir, when we came to you and removed those parasites, how many others did the same?"

Rodin looked at them for a long, long moment. "You don't want to know the answer."

And that was that.

"That's… that could be either too many or too few… Right, well, that's a bridge we'll have to cross when we get there." Sol said before finishing his drink.

"What do you think, Alex?" Sol asked Alex.

"I think…" The hybrid stopped for a moment before turning halfway towards the door to the outside of the bar. "I think we need to get a move on."

"Yeah, you're right. Rodin, thank you for the drink and supplies, but it looks like we're going to end this." Sol said while getting up.

"Yeah. If we're not meeting again after this, thanks for everything."

*************************************

The place where they had fought Gabrielle was a maze, with hallways and bridges that went nowhere and dead ends where it looked like there were ways forward.

It seemed impossible.

"We're missing something." Alex paced from one side of the place to the other, pivoting on his heel in a strangely fluid movement.

Sol began to snap his fingers before giving a long suffering sigh. "Maybe… maybe we need an aerial perspective? I mean, when you think about it, this place is not enclosed or anything; we could see what's around and," Sol paused for a moment before continuing, "Fly there?"

"I'm not going to have enough energy to fly us continuously and fight the Demon at the end of this labyrinth. So, we're going to have to get a good look at the place and then try to orient ourselves from that. Meaning, we're going as high as we can before coming down." Alex looked at Sol, a frown on his face.

"I know I take things lightly most of the time, but your fear of heights is not something I want to treat carelessly unless doing so shows that I am in control and not going to let you fall. Are you ok with this solution?"

"We've been fighting demons for the past. Who knows how long? If I can come out of this with at least one phobia conquered, that'll be a silver lining… Although fuck spiders, I'll never be cool around spiders." Sol said with a small chuckle.

He looked around at the maze before gesturing to an upper platform. "Maybe we don't have to fly too far. If we make it to a high enough place like that platform up there, we could get a better lay of the land."

"Hard same for spiders. And sure, let's try for that. Fair warning though, I'm going to go fast. Hop on." Calcabrina appeared in his hands before Alex let it go, and it started floating by itself. With a simple jump, both of them were on it.

"Grab my waist. And we're going!" The weapon shot upwards, far faster than what Alex used during a fight, reaching the upper platform in a few seconds.

Sol kept his eyes firmly shut until he could feel the platform below his feet. He was still incredibly shaky, but he managed to stand as quickly as he could. Looking around, the vantage point was useful to see just how labyrinthine the place actually was. There were two points of light off in the distance. One, closer, was dimmer than the other, farther off one. There was something else there, a spot of darkness against the pale light, but it wasn't easy to make out.

"I guess there's our statue and our way home… or what passes for it," Sol said.

"So, I'm guessing that the bright light is the end. We're going to the dimmer one. Here's hoping we're not making a mistake." Alex nodded at Sol, and the duo shot towards their destination.

*********************************************

The Statue was in what looked like a cul-de-sac, with exactly two things: a Divinity Statue on the right and a series of runes on the left. It was a new secret room.

"Well, I didn't expect that." Calcabrina vanished in the inventory while Alex studied the runes on the wall.

"Is it an encounter, or is it one of the puzzle rooms?" Sol asked while looking between the two.

"Still no idea. The runes are Enochian, but I still haven't cracked the code to see which one it creates." Alex said cheerily before grabbing Sol's hand and tapping the wall with his fingers.

"Let's find out, shall we?"

They vanished inside.

The room inside was not entirely expected. While it maintained the pale speckled marble of the realm outside, it was different in its theme. With its expansive layout, pale murals depicting a winged three-eyed being standing in front of a large congregation, and imitations of large chandeliers, it had more of a turn-of-the-century look than the parody of the heavens outside. This was only augmented by the additional sweeping blank tapestries and banners that hung across what could be considered the room's windows. All in all, it looked like a grand hall of sorts.

"This is not what I was expecting," Sol said while looking around the room.

"Hard same." Alex nodded to his companion before stopping. "What are we supposed to do here? There's no monster, and there's no visible puzzle above…" He stopped and looked up, trying to see if something was flying or on the ceiling, but there was nothing. "There's still nothing."

He made a turn on himself before looking at Sol. "This feels strange."

"Hmmm, you're right… Maybe…" Sol was cut off as the sound of shifting stone began to make itself noise. One of the murals began to move, slowly at first, but then more fluidly. As it did, lines of orange magma began to make themselves known across its body before a series of dark blue eyes opened. They scanned the room briefly before focusing on the two, and the creature pushed itself off the wall. Landing in front of them, it stepped forward, steam hissing with each step, and spoke.

"BAH! TWO MORE LITTLE ONES. I THOUGHT THERE WOULD BE SOMETHING HERE. YOU ARE HARDLY WORTH THE EFFORT!"

Sol took a step back, "That's… a giant spider!" He hissed out.

Alex stood there without moving, his face completely still, fixed in a rictus of fear for a moment before he took a step back.

"Nope." Calcabrina appeared in his hands a moment later, open, and pointed at the giant spider. "Nope." He charged the full beam in moments, half the time that he usually needed for it, before shooting it straight at the face of the demon.

"I refuse your existence."

The blasts caused the demon to recoil briefly before shaking its frame.

"SO THERE IS SOMETHING HERE? IT DOESN'T MATTER, I'LL STILL SQUASH YOU LIKE A BUG!" It roared before charging the two

BURNING ARACHNID: PHANTOM​

"Oh, shut up!" Alex exploded, before Calcabrina was suddenly replaced by Seraphim. Lances of pure sound flew towards the giant arachnid demon, slamming against his skin in a volley of vibrations that seemed to hurt him—somewhat.

"BAH! WHAT IS THAT NOISE!!!???" Phantom roared as it rose, a claw in the air tried to bring it down on the two.

Now Sol hated spiders. He had ever since he was a kid. However, instead of freezing up at the sight of spiders as he would with heights, he reacted… differently. If there was a spider and he could leave, Sol would do just that. If he couldn't leave, then he'd never feel comfortable until any spider in the room was crushed by a rolled magazine or something similar. And well… Semyaza was that rolled magazine.

"Infernal Punch!!!" Sol roared as he struck the claw, cracking the stone skin and sending magma spewing across the floor.

Phantom moved back, leaving long gouges on the stone ground before he stopped, and the temperature in the area started to rise. Fast.

Alexander, in the meantime, had summoned his Chorus and was trying to crack the carapace of the demonic spider with more spears of sound.

In response, Phantom reared back, and its abdomen opened, revealing a massive tail dripping with magma. The tail swung across its front in an attempt to mitigate the damage from the spears of sound. It didn't work entirely; Phantom's frame still shuddered in the assault, and the tail began to show more visible damage. What would be considered hairline fractures for a beast of its size opened along the tail, sending super heated blood spraying across its body, not that Phantom seemed to care about the spiking temperature.

Another series of punches from Sol seemed to drive Phantom back further as its forward legs began to show signs of damage. Not that that wasn't enough to draw the demon's focused ire. With a quick jerk, its forelegs opened wide, sending Sol into a wall. Dazed, the hybrid shook his head and attempted his assault once more.

Alex tried to attract the attention of the demon with more attacks from a distance, but all the answer he got was a series of globs of magma shot towards him like a catapult, the arch making the point of impact really hard to predict. So, Alex decided to do the smart thing and started moving to the side, trying to avoid the attack.

Phantom reacted by focusing on Alex's movement. It closed its mouth briefly before spitting large balls of fire towards Alex. It only managed a shot or two before Sol's fist crashed against its head. It leaped backward and planted itself against the wall before turning and scaling the wall horizontally in an attempt to get a better position.

Alex raised Seraphim before spheres of energy started coalescing around it. He was visibly sweating and murmuring something under his breath, clearly focusing on what he was doing.

He was, in short, trying to alter the bullet spell so that it would fire multiple bullets at the same time. However, if Phantom remained distracted for enough time, it was still to be seen.

Phantom's many eyes seemed to focus on Alex as the spell came its way. It attempted to lash out with its tail, only for a punch to knock it off balance. In the moment it had looked Alex's way, Sol had leaped forward and delivered an empowered punch, one strong enough to break the stone-like skin of the demon. While the limb wasn't too damaged, the shock of pain caused the demon's body to tense reflexively and cause Phantom to lose focus. As it slid off the wall, it was wide open to Alex's attack.

The thirteen spheres of magical energy that Alex had managed to create hovered around the feathered top of the staff for a moment more before they started vibrating. In the meantime, blood was trickling down from Alex's eyes, nose, and ears. Still, he persisted.

Like a rubber band under tension, the bullets mixed with sonic vibrations shot forward, spiraling together like a constellation, straight towards Phantom.

"GAHHHH!!!!" Phantom howled as the magic bombarded it. Large craters that wept magma were visible along its thorax. The demon fell on its back before sinking into the super-heated materials.

There was a brief moment of silence as the magma pool dissipated until Phantom's voice became known again.

"HOW CAN A BUG CAUSE ME SUCH PAIN!!!??? THIS CANNOT STAND!!!" Phantom's voices resonated throughout the hall.

"Awesome, he can hide." Alex deadpanned before swaying like he was on a ship. Then, he fell to the ground with a thud.

"I think I have damaged my inner ear. Give me a minute to regenerate it?" He was also looking only slightly to the side with respect to Sol, his voice more than a little woozy.

Sol spoke for the first time since the beginning of the battle. "Understood, do what you have to do."

As Sol scanned the room, all was still until he felt the floor below him become incredibly hot. Quickly side-stepping, he just managed to avoid the floor becoming a mass of magma as Phantom's head snapped out. Just as quickly as it came, the head retreated back into the floor.

"Greaaat, now this shit." Sol hissed out before dodging another floor attack.

"Alex can at least fly, I can't. Maybe I can use this to my advantage?" Sol thought to himself before drawing Vendetta. It only took a few more moments for Phantom to rear his ugly head again, and this time, the rolled magazine it met was a much larger sword. As Phantom's head came up, Vendetta came down. Carving deeply into its face, Phantom screamed before retreating and pushing itself out of the wall underneath the three-eyed angel's mural.

In the meantime, Alex was almost literally hugging the farthest wall he had managed to reach from where the two were fighting. Thanks to his hybrid nature, his wounds were almost healed already, but not completely. He still couldn't keep his balance. That didn't mean he didn't start preparing the same spell as before, although, this time, the bleeding was limited to the eyes and nose.

Phantom seemed to square itself from its position as a massive amount of fire began to channel in its open maw. Sol looked at it and realized that that would be a helluva lot more than just a mere fireball and tried to rack his brain to think of a way around it. Judging by the size of the attack the demon was preparing, more than half of the place would be engulfed in an ocean of flames strong enough to melt stone. The fact that Alex and Sol hadn't been incinerated on the spot was definitely thanks to sheer luck.

Phantom breathed once, twice and, on the third inhale, he started to exhale. That was the moment the sonic bullets that Alex had been preparing slammed into his mouth, one after the other, without a single moment of delay, until all thirteen had been spent.

The reaction between the sonic bullets and the fireball resulted in a massive explosion that billowed smoke throughout the room and masked Phantom from sight. There was a moment of silence until the heavy footsteps of Phantom could be heard. They were off, though, and as the dust settled, it became clear why. The attack utterly annihilated the head and a majority of the thorax, and the body only moved through muscle memory. It stood upright for several seconds before collapsing onto the ground in a heap.

Sol began to look around before checking himself for anything else. "The only good spiders are dead ones… Alex, how are you holding up?" Sol asked.

"Ow." The answer was muffled, considering that Alex was face down against the floor, a single hand raised with a finger extended before he let it flop down. "My everything hurts. Note for the future: do not try to create spells on the spot, even if they work."

Sol rushed forward, got Alex's arm over his shoulder, and helped him to his feet.

"Okay, well then, I owe for that, so we'll just have to remember that for the future, but you annihilated that eight-legged freak. So uh, keep that spell on reserve because damn if that's not powerful."

"Powerful, yes. Easily usable, no. Charging takes too much time, and I must adjust every part singularly. It's a headache and a half. Also, it makes me bleed like a motherfucker, as you can see." He gestured to his face before letting most of his weight rest on Sol.

"Still, maybe the Statue does have something to make it easier. What did we get from this room?" He looked around, trying to see what they had just gained.

Phantom's body broke down into a mass of red orbs, and something fell to the floor. Its purple glow contrasted well against the red orbs.

"I think that belongs to you," Sol said while gesturing to Purple Orb with his free hand.

"Seems so. I still think that you need to get some more if you want to use your techniques more. Also, now that you have the Devil Trigger active, you will need it." Alex let the Purple Orb dart into his chest before he turned fully towards Sol.

"It's not like the game, true. Still, it's… Related, so to speak. There's a definite tie between the two." His expression was pensive before white light filled their sight, and they found themselves back in the room with the statue.

"Anyway, this is probably the last time we'll have access to a statue. Go and max out everything maxable." And Alex gently pushed Sol towards the Watcher of Time.

"Yeah, maybe there's a blue light special on Power?" Sol said response before touching the statue.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

One last Secret Room for the road. The next chapter is the beginning of the final battle, and that's going to be quite the encounter.

Enjoy everyone.