1,460Author's Note (Please Read): Some recent occurrences have led to major life changes for me. For a while, I will be focusing on my art, as well as my original story ideas. Some of you know that I do art for a living. I find myself in a situation where I need all the support I can get. If you are older than 18, and wish to help me out, consider seeking out smilingsamurai1 on Twitter (X). That is my account. I take art commissions, and any I can get right now will go a long way in helping me pay my bills. I mention the age factor because my account has a lot of NSFW content and is not intended for interactions with minors. As for the fic itself, I do hope this story has been fun so far. Since this might be the last update in a while, I thought it might be interesting to provide some insight into what went into this, so stay tuned for a post-chapter note as well.
This chapter marks the end of this arc of the story. Although I would like to continue writing this, and will try to do so, it might be a while before I can put out another update. I wanted to part on a good note. So, I put out what I believe is a long-awaited Dante fight, as well as a moment that's been teased for many, many chapters now.
Chapter 42: Saviour on the Strings of Destiny
Yang blinked. "What just happened?"
She looked around. The mist was gone, as was the strange darkness. She looked at the others, whose faces mirrored her own look of puzzlement. She shook her head, trying to focus. She remembered running through the town, through the strange dimensional maze it had been turned into. She remembered stumbling onto Blake, Ruby, Valkyrie and that one boy who followed her around. They were about to be killed by the demon responsible for the mist.
And then… he was defeated.
But how?
Yang couldn't remember attacking him. With her new power, it wasn't impossible. But she had no memory of doing it. She closed her eyes, concentration. Dimly, somewhere in her memory, she could see the blank space left by… a figure. Someone had been with her. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember what or who it had been. She looked further back in her memory. She had been running through the town, looking for Weiss. That was when she had run into Cu Chulainn.
That's right. He and I fought together. He gave me his power. But… who were we fighting against?
She couldn't remember.
She looked at the others.
"Hey, you guys… something's wrong. I think my head is messed up", she said.
"You too?" Ruby said. "I can't remember anything that happened in the last five minutes."
"Five minutes?" The gaps in Yang's memory stretched further back.
"Yes," said Blake slowly. "We were about to be killed by Jack…"
"But we were saved," said Valkyrie. "I cannot recall how."
"Maybe now's not the time to think about it," said Ruby. "We need to make sure everyone's all right."
Yang shook her head. Something was very wrong. Her instincts told her that knowing the truth of this was crucial. But there was no time to dwell on it or investigate. Ruby was right.
"The mist's gone. There's no more dimensional warps," she said. She reached out with her senses, amazed by how easy it was for her now. She wasn't just sensing demonic power or Aura now. She was sensing the very life energies of everyone in the vicinity. How she had learnt to do that, she didn't know. But she could sense the one behind the attack on the town.
What power! He's strong as hell!Indeed, Cu Chulainn spoke in her mind. That power is well known to us of the Underworld.
As strong as this demon was, Yang could sense another power, one she knew very well, and one whose path to the goal was now open.
"Dante's heading right for him!" she said. "What's our move?"
"Evacuation is no longer a possibility," said Valkyrie. "The opportunity for that is gone. All that remains is to fight by Dante's side, and hope he ends this before any innocents are hurt."
The group nodded. Valkyrie grabbed the boy and placed him atop her shoulders. Yang blinked at this. There was a story here, but she would have to wait till later to hear it. As one, the group ran towards the demonic energy, where everything was about to go down.
Malevar breathed heavily, palm outstretched. In the space ahead, the last wisps of an explosion died. On the other side of the blast, completely relaxed, stood Merlin.
"I expected more from the greatest wizard of all time," the Serpent said.
Merlin didn't seem the least bit offended by the jab.
"Oh, I think this is quite enough for you. Any more would be unnecessary effort.""Why, you-"Before either of them could make a move, however, something changed. Weiss sensed it, just as they did. Tremendous energy, coming from the planet far below.
The mist… it must be gone. We can sense energy again.Merlin sighed.
"Well, it appears we will have to cut this short. Terribly sorry, old chap, but business beckons." He waved his hand, and a portal appeared next to him. He turned to leave, but paused for a moment and glanced at the Serpent. "It is unfortunate that you picked the losing side." With that, he disappeared.
Malevar straightened up, growling. "Losing side? Old fool.""What's going on?" said Weiss.
"Someone took out whoever was warping space. The path to the enemy leader is now clear. Dante is headed there. You should be able to sense it."
"Then we need to hurry there."
The sorcerer nodded. "Yes. It all comes to this then. Against that power… I pray Dante will overcome."
As the events on Remnant unfolded, a lone figure reclined, far above in the sky, watching. The alteration of memories was a crude tactic, one normally far beneath him. But he had come too far to be foiled now. The biggest obstacle to his victory had been Sura, and with him out of the way, Lucifer's path to his ultimate goal was clear. How long had he planned for this? How many lives had he needed to influence? Anything less than the greatest, most entertaining path could not be permitted.
But at the same time, the goal could not be compromised.
In every world where evil existed, always, a hero would rise to face it. Lucifer had discovered very early on that this was simply how God had designed existence. Light to balance dark. Light and dark, that always clashed, and yet, were both necessary for Creation to exist.
In order to succeed, Lucifer needed to cultivate faith. Not necessarily in himself, but in a demon.
Of course, he had tried. In many, many, many, many worlds.
But the circumstances had never quite been right.
He needed the right people.
And the right hero.
And so, he learnt from his errors in countless timelines, across many worlds. Waited, and watched with Future Sight. The future was not set in stone. It was a sea, a path with endless branches, and the slightest decision, the smallest event could alter the path a timeline took. Going back to the past and undoing one's mistakes was not reliable either: one could never predict what unintended changes could come from it. So Lucifer knew that he would only have one chance to succeed.
He needed the right world, the right people.
One where souls knew, at least to some extent, about their own dormant powers. Yet, it could not be a world where dogma and faith would turn them against demons. This was difficult. Demons were rarely loved. And most worlds had deities to protect them, or at least guard them for their own selfish purposes.
Remnant was just right. A world abandoned by its gods. A world that was a battlefield for light and dark. A world in need of a hero.
But it needed the right hero.
Demons sought power. But a demon with a human heart, one that cared, would not be cruel. Yet, it wouldn't seek to rule either. So a situation needed to be created, where ruling was the only possible, sensible choice. Where doing so would be benevolent. Kind. A way to prevent further death and tragedy.
Sparda had potential, but Future Sight had told Lucifer he was not the one.
In any case, his two sons were far more interesting.
And yet, they were not both the same.
Vergil was fun, in his own way. A beautiful tragedy. And yet, the scars he would bear, one way or another, rendered him unsuitable for the task Lucifer had in mind.
And that left… Dante.
He had it all. The power. The heart. The soul. But he needed the right circumstances to shape him. Circumstances that would mostly be the same, even without Lucifer's interference. Yet, he needed to make sure he met the right people, at the right time.
And now, after all these years, it had all come together at last.
"So many pathetic Demon Kings. Oh well, I suppose we needed them to keep the throne warm. The rest is up to you, Dante."
They were not quite home free yet.
There was still the matter of the other claimant to the throne.
Dante looked around.
The mist was gone, as was the strange darkness.
As though a blanket had been lifted from his senses, he could feel all of the demonic energy signatures all around… including the largest one of them all.
So that's the one behind all of this. But something's off.
The energy signature felt strange. As though it wasn't truly natural. Something about it was twisted, artificial. Yet, Dante had learnt something from all of his encounters with people who wanted to destroy or own the world. Ultimately, the one with the greatest power was the one who was most dangerous.
"I have to take that out," he said aloud."
"I'll come with you," said Nevan.
Dante did not reply. In truth, he needed all the help he could get. Yet, throughout the course of his life, he had taught himself to never rely on others, never put someone else in harm's way.
Without a word, he dashed forward, towards the source of it all.
It took him only a moment to get there.
"What the hell?"
He had been expecting a true warrior, a figure of indescribable power, like Urizen, or Mundus, or the Despair Embodied. Instead, what he saw was a writhing, gigantic spherical structure. It was organic, coated with huge, meaty veins that pulsed at a regular interval.
Is that an egg?As Dante looked on, the last vestiges of the mist faded, revealing the the town in its entirety, unobscured. Lying on the ground, breathing hard, were the strange orange-haired child Dante's students had befriended. Penny, her name was. Next to her, barely conscious, was the dark, deer-antlered demon named Iris. And further away, also incapacitated was the enormous stone titan named Atlas.
This egg managed to beat all of them?
In front of his very eyes, the gigantic egg began to morph.
Its translucent membrane writhed wildly, pulsing with energy.
A hole opened in space-time, and a figure stepped out of it. An aged man on the surface, with a long beard. Yet, peerless demonic power flowed from him.
"Hail Dante, son of Sparda. I wish we could have met under better circumstances."Dante looked at the strange old man.
"I feel like I should know someone like you", he said.
The old man nodded, a slight smile on his face.
"Perhaps in a different world, a different time, that could have been the case.""We're not going to be able to coexist, are we? Drink beer and play cards on Sundays?"
The old man smiled wryly, his expression mirroring Dante's.
"Despite being on opposing sides, I can tell you are a true warrior, through and through. You should know then, peaceful endings aren't meant for the likes of us."
Dante chuckled.
"A shame."
The old man closed his eyes.
"Indeed. You are a good man. Regardless, you are unsuited to be the King of Demons."
"King of Demons?" Dante scoffed. "You think I've got any interest in some boring title?"
Ebony and Ivory spun into his hands.
"You can keep the fancy titles and glorified chair. I've got no interest in thrones. But you threaten this world, and we've got a problem."
The old man smiled.
"I can see why you'd think that. Yet, I have no interest in titles or thrones. I can't really expect someone whose entire life has been planned out to understand that. Nevertheless, the throne of Demon Kings cannot be allowed to fall into Lucifer's hands."Dante frowned. "Lucifer? What the hell are you talking about?"
"It doesn't matter. Not anymore. You will soon see anyway. As formidable as you are, we could not count on any one warrior to defeat you. And so, we collected the souls of many."As Dante looked on, the egg's membrane began to crack. A hand broke through from within, tearing through the surface. The energy pulsing from the cocoon was revealed to be coming from its owner. Slowly, the figure tore through the shell, standing upright.
As it stood tall, several flashes of energy pulsed from it.
Each of them was unique, and incredibly powerful, distinct.
"Apologies, Son of Sparda. This is where your story ends."
The figure growled. Its eyes fixed upon Dante.
Yang ran as fast as she could. Up ahead, she could see a familiar figure in a red jacket. She came to a stop when she noticed the gigantic egg close to him. The rest of the group stopped as well.
"What the hell…"
A hole tore open in the fabric of space and time. Through it emerged Weiss, and behind her, the demonic sorcerer who had accepted her as his apprentice. It was just in time too. The egg was about to hatch.
Salem ran towards the tremendous fluctuations in magic she could sense. Normally, she would be fleeing in the direction opposite a power like that. But she knew quite well that escape was no longer an option. Whatever was being born threatened the entirety of Remnant. One way or another, her fate would be sealed. And so, she decided to see for herself. She came to a stop, seeing that the young huntresses, as well as the powerful Demons that made up the Five, were already gathered, some of them already unconscious. Standing before a pulsating, gigantic egg was Dante.
In an alternate dimensional space, just removed from Remnant, a certain pair of twins, one light and one dark, watched the events unfolding in Hoperow.
"We have a signal," said the operator. The screen in front of Ozpin lit centuries old wizard looked on, carefully observing. He had already felt the tremendous energies from Hoperow. The fate of Remnant… no, the fate of all of existence hung in the balance. Right now, all he could do was watch.
"Locked on to energy signal. Accessing visual feed from Cross Continental Transit system."
Ironwood's mental world lit up with a live image taken directly from camera footage. He could see that thrice-damned red-coated interloper. But it was too soon to act against him. For now, he would have to watch, and wait.
Lucifer smiled broadly. The moment had arrived.
"You better live up to my expectations."Reaching out with his power, he connected with every living soul in Remnant. For one such as him, giving them all a live vision of the battle that was to unfold was easy.
As Dante looked on, the figure that had emerged from the egg walked towards him.
Without warning, it launched itself forward, right at him.
It was fast. Incredibly fast. It wasn't the first time Dante had faced someone like that. There was Mundus, who could bend time itself to move at any speed he wanted to. There was Vergil, whose speed was a result of cultivated skill and pure natural ability. Yet, this being was different.
It moved with incredible speed simply because it came as naturally to it as breathing.
Dante leapt away, barely avoiding a punch that shattered the ground where he had stood.
The energy signature from the figure fluxed.
Dante frowned, but had no time to analyse the occurrence. The figure leapt at him again, with even greater speed this time. Once more, Dante dashed away. This time, however, the figure reached out with his palm. Dante felt the flow of time around him constrict, slowing him down.
What the hell?
Countering on instinct, Dante activated the power of the Geryon, which he had absorbed long back, allowing himself to move freely even in manipulated time. He leapt out of the way, and barely in time too.
The figure leapt down where he had been, its punch smashing into the ground, which cracked. All of Remnant trembled, as a fault spread across the entirety of Vale.
This one's dangerous.
Dante knew he could no longer hold back.
Going on the offensive, he dashed towards the figure. Aiming both Ebony and Ivory at it, he fired. Twin shots, empowered by demon energy, shot towards the being. In the past, a single charged bullet from Dante had been enough to dispatch the likes of the Despair Embodied. This the figure knew. Instead of allowing the bullets to strike it, it waved its hand in a wide arc. Time and space once more tore open, and both charged shots disappeared into the portal, leaving the figure unharmed.
"You are powerful indeed, Son of Sparda. Yet, before the might of us all, you will perish."
Dante frowned.
Might of us all?Before he had time to think about it, the figure charged towards him. This time, it didn't manipulate space-time. Instead, it threw its fist right at Dante. A simple punch, yet one loaded with sheer power.
On instinct, Dante used Trickster style to teleport away.
He managed to dodge the blow.
Yet, the shockwave from the missed strike hit the planet itself.
All of Remnant cracked in half.
What the hell?!
Before Dante could adjust, the figure warped into place next to him.
It held out its hands, and a pair of spectral swords appeared in its hands.
Though Dante tried his best to dodge, twin strikes sank into his flesh.
The figure stood, blades held at the ready. One, a katana. The other, a shorter wakizashi.
"The fate of humanity has been sealed", it said. "And so has that of demonkind."
Dante had no time to answer, because once more, time itself stopped.
Countless slashes expanded outwards, giving no opportunity to dodge or block.
They had all been cut.
Ruby. Yang. Blake. Weiss. Malevar. Valkyrie. Oscar. Atlas. Iris. Nevan. Every single inhabitant of Hoperow.
And the crack that had already been inflicted on the very planet continued to spread, breaking the very world into pieces, even as the gravity holding it together was powerless in stopped time.
"Do you see now, Dante?" said Merlin. "Powerful though you may be, you are one. The Demon King is many. The strength of Heracles. The speed of Geryon. The sword technique of Musashi. My own Magic. And that is not all. Every great hero that was ever born in the history of mankind. Every demi god that has ever possessed the heart of humanity, and the power of demons. All of it has been gathered here, against you."
Dante breathed hard.
Though he had been pierced, shot and slashed thousands of times in his life, the blows from the figure possessed incredible power, enough that even his demonic healing struggled to knit his wounds closed.
"Why?" he asked. "Why go to all this effort?"
"Because you are unworthy," the figure replied. "Because you are a mere pawn. And thus, you cannot be allowed to take control of the throne. You cannot be allowed to lead humans and demons."A pawn?Dante did not know what the figure was talking about.
He had never wanted the throne of the Demon King. It had seemed meaningless to him.
Was that really it though?
Had he simply not wanted it because it meant nothing? Or was there something else?
Somewhere within him, a voice whispered.
Wasn't it because I was afraid?An image flashed in his mind. Of his parents, dead. Of Vergil, taken by demons. Of Nell Goldstein, burnt alive in her own house.
Every time I really cared about someone, I let them down.Before he could sink into his own despair though, he heard voices.
At first, it was just the voices of the many people of Remnant.
How the hell even-?!He could hear them in his own mind, as clearly as though they were whispering into his ears.
Dante. I know he won't lose. Dante will win! The Legendary Dark Knight doesn't lose.
He could hear the voices of his students.
Come on, Teach! Don't let this demon bully you! Show this guy what for!
We have seen the powerful already, Dante. The strong, who ruled only for themselves. Those who had no love for those they lorded over. Those who only wished for pain and death. Those who only wished to dominate.
All of it sunk in.
The cries of humans, who wished to live in peace. And those of demons, who had always been driven against their will by the cruel.
Dante had no interest in a throne.
But if it meant ensuring a better life for everyone…
If that's all it takes…
As all of the hopes, fears and dreams of humans and demons alike came to rest on Dante, he willingly made the choice to bear them all.
The title of Demon King was never thrust upon one.
It was chosen willingly.
The figure rushed in, swinging right at Dante's face.
Instead of dodging or blocking, the Legendary Devil Hunter moved his head into the punch, headbutting the fist.
The figure flinched, all five of its right hand knuckles broken.
"Impossible!"
Dante rolled his neck, and began to walk towards the amalgamation.
He could hear them all.
The voices of the many who wanted him to win.
As their faith flowed into him, he could feel his own heart beating.
The shell of faux confidence and the layers and layers of guardedness broke.
Instead of the armour of style he always wore, his true self showed through.
Each voice, each soul, each cry gave him strength.
A crimson aura of sheer power glowed around Dante.
Roaring in anger, the figure drew upon the legendary skills of the demon swordsman who was part of him, slashing countless times in the space of a single instant.
Each and every blow was deflected.
Dante wasn't even looking at the figure.
"All of this time, you've all been suffering. And if all it takes to pull you out is this…"
Bending down, he placed both hands on the ground.
Tendrils of unfathomable demonic power flowed through all of Remnant.
Every single crack was filled, every piece pulled back together.
The entire planet was made whole once again.
But it didn't stop there.
Dante's power extended further, to a moon that didn't exist anymore. Matter was created where it didn't exist, and a new satellite was created to replace the one the twins had cracked so long ago, and that Lucifer had turned into Ironwood's new body.
The figure took a step back.
"No… this can't be!"
Using all of the strength of Heracle himself, enough strength to move the universe itself, he rushed at Dante.
Dante held out one palm.
The amalgamation, formed out of the combined power of the greatest demi-gods in all of history, could not move.
Struggle as it did, it could not escape from Dante's grip.
"This cannot be! I was made to rule! Rule this world… rule ALL worlds!"
Dante felt like he finally understood his father.
His form shifted.
From human, to demon, to both.
Glowing, wreathed in flames that sparked from within, True Devil Trigger Dante looked at the Avatar of Demonkind.
Ten feet away, Merlin's eyes widened.
A glowing white crown made of pure energy had appeared on Dante's head.
All of Remnant saw it.
Made of Demonic power and human faith.
All of Remnant had prayed for a hero, for thousands of years.
And that hero had now arrived.
"This world is under my protection. Demons to rule? Humans to rule? Don't make me laugh. I'll make a happy ending for everyone. And if all it takes to do it is sitting on some stupid fucking throne, so be it."
The figure's eyes widened, as did everyone's who beheld what followed.
Dante's form morphed once more. His Shin Devil Trigger turned white and gold, transcending the realm of Demonic Power as he ascended.
Unwinnable Boss Battle: Demon King Dante
The figure had nowhere to run, neither did Merlin.
The Devil Sword appeared in Dante's hand and flashed, once.
One swing was all it took.
Raising Ebony high, Dante fired, once.
A blast of pure energy rose into the sky like a shooting star before exploding in a magnificent shower of sparks, each one descending upon the Grimm scattered through the planet, eradicating every last one from existence.
The age of the Twins was ended.
A new age had dawned on Remnant.
Far above the world, Lucifer leaned back, laughing wildly.
Author's note: I see a lot of questions about the lore of this fic, so here are some answers that will help. True Magic is essentially reality warping, as it is called in power scaling terms. I'm not fond of power scaling (I think it's pointless), but the terminology is useful here. Essentially, True Magic allows the user to alter themselves or the world or individuals around them in any way they see fit, even if it goes completely against the laws of Physics. True Magic=Demonic Power. Lesser demons don't have any control over what they do with their power, leading to mostly simple applications of it. Named demons have better control, but can't necessarily do whatever they feel like, because True Magic stems from belief. So unless one is sure of what they wish to do on a spiritual level, it won't happen. This is why warrior-type named Demons have various fighting-related uses of True Magic. They believe in their soul that they can do certain things, and thus, they are able to. Humanity, on the other hand, is the thing demons are sundered from. Due to Lucifer's choice, as well as demons' own hubris, they do not have faith, hope or love, which prevents them from accessing the power of Heart. Heart is not True Magic, but it is, paradoxically, the source of True Magic, as well as the link between True Magic and Divinity. True Magic + Heart or Humanity= Divine Power. This is the closest anyone can get to Divine Power. Those possessing it have both True Magic and Heart, and are agents of God's Will, those capable of altering destiny and going against the world itself.
Firstborn= God's first children. These are the oldest beings, as old as time include the angels (such as Lucifer), as well as true deities such as Sura. All of the Firstborn are siblings, but they have vastly different powers, abilities and purposes. Lucifer, for instance, is a life shaper, one who helps various living beings achieve their true potential. Sura, on the other hand, is a destroyer, who must eliminate anything that threatens the balance of existence.