Dante

  He smashed the glass with the back of his sword and jumped down to Eva. With much of his strength, he brought the blade down on her chains.

  She'd lowered her head, making herself as small as possible. To not get in his way. Dante was grateful for her being so in sync with his thoughts.

  When she looked up at him, her eyes were full of gratitude, not fear. He wanted nothing more than to pick her up and jump right back out the larger window. But with the crystal glowing around her neck, he knew he needed to stop Arcturus. There was no more hiding, no more waiting.

  He died tonight.

  Even if that meant Dante needed to cut him up piece by piece. He'd start with his limbs so he could experience the same pain he'd inflicted on Evanora.

  "Run." It was just a whisper, but she heard the command in his tone, and for once, she didn't argue. He didn't watch her get to her feet. Instead, he turned his rage towards Arcturus.

  "You fucking bastard. I knew I should have decapitated you when I had the chance." Dante raised his sword to him but was really listening for Eva. Listening to see if she'd gotten far enough from the impending fray.

  "Always so quick to anger and a step behind, Tartarus spawn." He sneered. "I almost thought you wouldn't show."

  He shrugged off his gaudy cloak and brought out a sword etched in runes Dante had never seen before. As he brought the weapon up in the same manner as Dante, the blade slowly engulfed in a bright orange flame.

  It had been some years since they last spared but Dante knew his moves. The blade didn't matter. Dante had also learned so much more in his absence.

  He pulled at his demon to give him the strength he needed but refused to pull too much with Eva still in the room.

  Dante made the first move, striking forward only to have him dodge, their swords clanging. He'd anticipated this and swung again.

  Their movements were precise, both mentor and protégé almost dancing around the room.

  Dante tried to stay focused on his battle, but he'd heard Eva's startled shriek, and it distracted him just enough for Arcturus to slice his hot blade across the back of his leg.

  The second cut came when Arcturus had stood from the first and skillfully slashed Dante's back.

  Dante jumped away from him and tried to ignore the unusual searing pain from both wounds but found himself failing. He resisted mumbling a “what the fuck” but WHAT THE FUCK?

  He'd never felt a pain like that before. Even when he'd been shot with iron or wounded by a creature, the pain was there but nothing to this extent. He shook off his long jacket and flexed his back, the pain worsening.

  "Yes, it does a great deal of damage. A weapon courtesy of your traitorous father." Arcturus scoffed in triumph as he waved the blade slowly at his side, the air around it prickling grey with its inferno. "After the Rift, it took a long while to find, but then again, Tartarus was never good at relocating his precious things."

  "So again, using the power of those stronger than you," Dante smirked at him and tried to push his shock aside. "Don't you have any original ideas of your own?"

  The runes on his body began to illuminate as he tossed a blue ball of fire toward Dante. He dodged it but it had landed near Eva. Her tiny yelp distracted Dante again and it earned him another slice to his bicep that he actually did grunt from.

  He growled at the pain, jumping away from Arcturus, and worked to find another angle that would just keep the fray intimate.

  "You've grown weak, Dante." He teased. "Forgotten your training.”

  Dante's blade sliced air mere inches from Arcturus's face, and their swords clashed again in a deadly rhythm that caused sparks to fly from his opponent's blade.

  “She's a distraction.” He taunted. As they pushed away from each other, another fireball formed in his palm. “Shall I demonstrate her… fragility?"

  Dante spun low, striking upward to remove his hand but Arcturus parried barely in time. Again, he dodged, weaving between Arcturus' slashing attacks, their feet pounding against the tile as they danced around each other.

  Arcturus stumbled back from one of Dante's powerful blows to the face but he quickly regained footing, slicing forward again. Dante ducked behind him and swung harder, actually cutting him for the first time, returning the slice he'd received to the back.

  Arcturus cried out.

  "Still of flesh and blood, I see." Dante taunted back, knowing one of his quests was to be as near indestructible as Dante.

  Arcturus had also learned new tricks and though Dante was stronger than most any demon he'd come across without his essence, Arcturus had two things the others didn't. The experience and the cunning determination.

  He'd fought alongside Tartarus for centuries before Dante had come along. Despite Arcturus training Dante, it also appeared he hadn't taught him everything he knew.

  That didn't mean Dante wasn't going to take his fucking head.

  He relayed this to him as he stabbed his sword into the ground, surprising his opponent. Dante had realized he'd been landing more blows with his free fist than the sword. So he began to use more brute force. He took the two smaller blades he'd placed at his lower back and brought them to his face. It was in the same manner he'd tried to teach Evanora, and Arcturus scoffed at the implication of hand-to-sword combat.

  Dante shrugged, knowing his rage gave him an edge in tight spaces.

  Carefully, he weighed his potential strikes before pushing off from his spot. He dodged the fire from the blade when it was swung, dipping down low to the ground and slicing at the back of both his legs with a cross of his arms. Arcturus stumbled but only for a moment before turning. The blade nearly cut Dante's chest but he'd leaned back to avoid its path. When the motion moved the other man's arm in a proper opening, Dante came up with all his strength, lifting them both from the ground.

  One of Dante's blades cut deep into the space under his arm and the hunter twisted to disarm his opponent as they landed again.

  Though Arcturus screamed out in pain and released the sword, he still swung his elbow out and connected it with Dante's jaw.

  Dante didn't stumble. Instead, he pushed them off the ground and sent them flying toward the massive window. His hope had been to take the fight where he could draw more of his essence, but Arcturus shifted them so they hit the bricked wall instead of the glass.

  Even with the shift, Dante still had pinned him against the wall. One blade entered his chest, piercing the magical tissue guarding his heart. If he'd been human, it would have killed him, but the barrier was thick. The other blade pressed so close to his neck that it began to draw blood.

  "Stop the spell," Dante demanded in a low growl.

  Behind him, he'd heard Eva's gasps but refused to get distracted again, not when he was so close to victory.

  Arcturus smirked but didn't flinch with the blade at his jugular. Instead, his eyes flicked behind Dante. "You've failed, hunter."

  He only turned for a moment to see Eva being stalked back into the summoning circle, feet trying to shuffle carefully around the glass but failing. Her bloody footprints were everywhere making it easier for the Pyropex to track her. It didn't attack, only stalked her, probably waiting for the command from its master.

  He swiftly tried to turn his attention back to the blade drawing blood at his foe's throat. To demand he call off his hound but Arcturus had reached his arm out, calling for his fallen weapon.

  It sang as it whipped through the air to meet its master's hand while Arcturus pushed into Dante roughly with his free arm and flipped their positions towards the opposite wall. As they hit, the blade had finally connected with his hand and Arcturus plunged the sword into Dante's left shoulder.

  Dante's breath caught in a sharp painful gasp even though the sword was no longer in flames.

  "I'm not going to kill you." He twisted the sword so it dug deeper into Dante, making him release the knife that had once been at the man's throat. The force of the blow had impaled Dante into the wall and the motion made a pained growl escape him. "I want you to watch her last breath breathe life back into Lilith."

  In one motion Acturus turned and sent the knife Dante once held to his jugular flying towards Eva.

  Her name ripped from his throat with a pain worse than the burning in his shoulder.

  "Eva! No!" He'd tried to stop Arcturus's arm but it was too late. The dagger flew with lightning speed, piercing the space next to her heart just as she turned.

  The pained gasp that left her made his stomach drop. While she fell to her knees in the center of the circle, Dante worked to free himself.

  Arcturus had left him impaled and returned to chanting at the podium. He'd waved off his hellhound and it had taken a few steps back from Eva but still stayed at attention.

  Dante pulled at the sword releasing another pained growl as it slowly came from his shoulder and freed him from the wall.

  Instead of trying to finish Arcturus off, he went to Evanora who'd started to fall forward. The blade had missed her heart by mere inches but had probably pierced her lung and he hoped, idiotically, that there was still a chance.

  He slid into the circle just before she could fall and plunge the blade further. He held her up carefully, placing a hand on her shoulder to stop her tilt and to cup her sticky hands so she wouldn't move the blade.

  "Fuck, Evanora." Her name came from him like a prayer, cracking with anguish. "No, no! Stay awake. Move your hands, stay with me."

  He tried to move her gently but the way her breath rasped as she choked out in pain brought tears to his eyes. Her ruby lips murmured but nothing escaped them. There was a determination in her brow as her hands weakly clutched his bloodied shirt and he hushed her, begging her again to stay awake for him.

  But it was too late for that.

  Her body went limp in his arms as her eyes rolled back with the flutter of her lids.

  "No!" His onyx fingers gripped her cheeks, the dark tendrils spreading up his arms like a stain. "Wake up, Evanora! Don't do this to me."

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  Images of his mother's limp form in his arms played behind his eyes, and he shut them tight, fighting the memory of that night. Fighting the fiery rage that bubbled over, causing the flames from the candles to burn brighter and out of control around them.

  His teeth ached as his canines began to sharpen.

  “No, no, not now,” he pleaded with himself, words growling out of him and rumbling in his chest. “Not fucking now. Please.”

  He had to keep himself together. For her.

  As he held her, he felt his body begin to shift, his bones lengthening, his muscles straining. The sensation was like his very skeleton was being reshaped from the inside out. His skin felt tight as if it was being stretched to its limits. He was losing control, and he knew it.

  The seconds ticked by like hours, and he felt himself shaking, his essence taking hold.

  The candles around them seemed to flicker in sync with his racing heart, casting eerie shadows on the walls. The air was thick with tension, and the darkness closing in around him seemed to be pulling him under.

  He was drowning in his own rage, and he couldn't escape.

  And yet, even as he felt himself being consumed by his own fury, his gaze remained fixed on Eva, her delicate face a stark contrast to the turmoil raging within him.

  Droplets of blood stained her forehead, and Dante realized they were coming from his shoulder. As he tried to wipe them away, he noticed the blood pooling from both his shoulder and her chest, forming intricate patterns on the floor.

  The ground beneath him began to crackle with the power he was emitting, his essence straining to break through. The patterns were disrupted as the cracks spread, but before he could react, their combined blood shot toward the crystal, illuminating it with a blindingly bright blue light. The color deepened, darkening into a rich ruby red as the crystal seemed to absorb the energy.

  As the light from the crystal enveloped them, Dante's attention shifted from his own transformation to Eva's body, which was now floating in his arms. The air was charged with the pulsing electricity of his essence, but it wasn't the cause of her levitation.

  The bottles around them shattered, releasing their energy, and a swirling pool of blue formed beneath them, marking the beginnings of a portal. However, instead of falling through, gravity seemed to have lost its hold on them.

  As Eva rose higher, Dante tried to grasp her, but his claws, now fully formed, made him hesitate, fearing he might hurt her further. He could still hear the faint, labored breathing, a stark reminder of her fragile state. The onyx hue continued its ascent up his arms as he reached out for her, his desperation growing.

  When he finally felt himself become weightless, like Eva, he pushed off from the ground, trying to reach her again. But she had already floated several feet away, and before he could even attempt to cradle her, an unseen force pushed him back, separating them further.

  The force propelled him out of the circle as if the air between them had been shattered. Eva remained suspended in mid-air, the necklace straining against her neck as it drew power from the comet above. Dante took a step forward, his outstretched hand reaching for her once more, but the portal beneath her erupted in a turbulent sea of blue swirls, and the crystal burst apart in a spectacular display of energy.

  The explosion filled the circle, blocking Dante's view of Eva before violently expanding throughout the room. The blast sent Arcturus crashing into the wall, destroying the podium and propelling Dante through the massive window.

  The glass shattered around him, but he managed to grab the clock's hand with his claw, his weight causing the metal arm to groan in protest. When it gave way, his claws dug into the building's exterior, allowing him to propel himself back into the room.

  As the explosion died down, it sucked Eva into the portal's blue abyss, and Dante let out a loud curse.

  Arcturus was already at the portal, sword in hand, and flashed Dante a smirk before stepping into the blue void behind Eva.

  Lowell and Monroe finally burst into the room, and with their battered states, Dante wasn't sure if they had arrived before or after the explosion. They sprinted towards the portal, mirroring Dante's actions. Lowell was about to leap in, but Dante intervened, grabbing him to prevent his descent.

  "We can't just leave her!" Lowell's voice trembled with a mix of worry and anger as he tried to break free from Dante's grip.

  “We're not.” Dante set Lowell back on his feet, deliberately ignoring Monroe's look of disgust.

  He was aware of his own hybrid appearance, his body a blend of human and demon, with the dark, midnight-black hue of his demonic form spreading. Despite his efforts to control the shift, his rage was gaining the upper hand, and Monroe’s intense glare only seemed to be fueling the fire.

  Dante stepped into the portal without hesitation, bracing himself for impact, unsure where it would take him.

  His primary concern was Eva, who had a faint pulse before her ascension. He couldn't abandon her to die.

  To his surprise, it dropped them somewhere in the Nether. Somewhere very deep from the crushing weight Dante could feel pulling at his human half.

  When he landed, he evaded Eva's body which was still too limp against the black stone. Though he could hear the faint whistle of her breath, he still felt for her pulse. Her heart was pumping but weakly.

  She was strong.

  She wasn't gone yet.

  But Arcturus was.

  They'd landed in the middle of what appeared to be catacombs.

  Likely in the lower Crypta region of Chaosia. The air was heavy with an eerie silence, and the walls bore the symbols and likeness of Kaos, carved above each entrance of the four passages surrounding them. The intricate carvings seemed to watch them, casting long shadows in the flickering torchlight. The atmosphere was ominous, and a strange sense of unease hung over Dante.

  Arcturus' sinister chuckle echoed throughout the space, making it difficult to pinpoint which passage he'd taken. The sound seemed to come from all directions, adding to the unease that settled in Dante's stomach.

  And all Dante could smell over the stale air of the Nether was the sweetness of Evanora's blood. The scent was intoxicating, resonating deeply with his demon half, amplifying its influence and intensifying his desire to regenerate faster.

  Arcturus’ sinister voice forced him to focus and ignore his demon essence surging with the Nethers energy.

  "Be seeing you, Son of Tartarus." His voice echoed through the caverns and, with his father's name, there was the frail moan of something feminine.

  "Son of Tartarus?" her soft voice murmured questioningly.

  Lilith.

  Dante gently pulled Evanora into his arms and forced his body back through the portal just before it could close on them.

  It landed them within the circle again where Monroe and Lowell were there waiting to take her. But Dante refused to let them touch her.

  When he tried to stand and push past them, Lowell grabbed his arm. "Wait, she's not gonna make it to help like this. We gotta do something now."

  Unless the Keepers had developed an elixir with healing properties, which Dante was certain they had not, Lowell was wasting precious moments Eva didn't have.

  "You can heal her, Dante." Lowell took a knife from the sheath on his leg. "She needs your blood."

  Monroe's eyes widened in outrage as he grasped Lowell's hand, the one holding the knife.

  "Are you crazy? That could kill her–" His gaze snapped to Dante, his expression a mix of alarm and disgust as he took in Dante's hybrid form. "Or something way worse.”

  "She could die either way." Lowell snapped, snatching his hands away. "At least this way she has a fighting chance."

  He was pleading with him but Dante shook his head. He wouldn't risk her body rejecting it or Monroe's fear. A blood bond.

  He wanted Evanora more than air itself but… he also wanted it to be her choice. On her terms, not the bonds.

  "Do you want her to die?" Lowell's voice cracked with desperation, his eyes pleading as he gazed down at Evanora. "Please… I can't lose my sister, too."

  "She could be bonded–"

  "A few drops won't make a bond!" He’d heard when Dante's resolve wavered. There was a glimmer of hope in his brown eyes, the same cognac as his sisters but without the captivating honey. "Just enough to get her to the hospital."

  "Please don't do this.” Monroe's pleas fell on deaf ears as he lunged for the knife once more, but Lowell swiftly drew a gun, its muzzle trained on the Reaper. Lowell's face contorted in a mixture of anguish and fury, his eyes blazing with a desperate intensity.

  "You can't be serious?" Monroe's voice was laced with incredulity.

  "I will lose both my siblings in one night,” he declared, his voice cracking with emotion. As he spoke, Dante finally noticed the dark stains on the Keeper's knees and hands.

  His words hung heavy in the air, a desperate vow of anguish and determination.

  But Dante knew Lowell was right.

  For Eva, Dante would bleed himself dry if it meant she'd survive.

  If it meant her light would still be in his world.

  If it meant he could see the warmth in her cheeks again, not the sickly grey she was beginning to turn.

  Dante sank back to the floor with her, ignoring Monroe's warnings and his own reservations. He carefully grasped the hilt of the knife still lodged in her chest, his fingers wrapping around it tentatively.

  Her labored breathing had grown more ragged as they deliberated.

  With a gentle tug, he pulled the blade free, and when she didn't flinch, he feared the worst. That she might be too far gone.

  But for her, he was willing to try anything.

  He hoped that her blood, still warm on the knife, would somehow bond with his as it touched her tongue. That maybe, just maybe, this fragile connection might prevent her body from rejecting the power of his essence.

  As he cradled her head in the crook of his arm, he used his other hand to slice into his palm, the sensitive black skin prickling in protest.

  Lowell, sensing the moment, stopped his threats against Monroe and dropped to his knees, opening Eva's mouth in preparation for the next step.

  Only a few drops.

  One ruby droplet grazed her lip, another landed on her tongue, and a gentle trickle met the back of her throat.

  "Enough!" Monroe's voice rose in protest. "No more!"

  Dante hastily withdrew his hand, and Lowell closed her mouth, his grip on her arms tightening as he pleaded with their false god.

  Dante pressed his cheek against hers, sending his own silent, desperate plea to the old Gods, though he knew they couldn't hear him.

  "Please," he whispered tenderly into her ear, a prayer meant only for her. "Come back to me."

  Monroe's anxiety boiled over.

  "We tried," he snapped. "We need to go; she needs a hospital.”

  Dante nodded in agreement. Regardless if the blood hit her system or not, it wouldn't be enough to completely heal her. It was just enough to hopefully keep her heart pumping until they got her actual medical attention.

  As he rose to his feet, they hastened their exit from the building. Lowell and Monroe led the way back to the entrance, which opened into a spacious area. To the right, a staircase ascended deeper into the apartment, while the stairs directly in front of them descended downward. At the bottom of those stairs, was a gruesome bloodbath that caused Lowell's body to tremble as they made their way down.

  As they navigated the carnage, they stepped over the ravaged body of a Pyropex, its corpse marred by bullet holes and nearly severed in two.

  Dante's gaze lingered for only a moment before stepping over the lifeless body of the boy next to the slain beast. He was relieved that Eva wasn't awake to witness the gruesome sight.

  He didn’t think she’d ever sleep again.

  Lowell struggled to contain his emotions, stifling a sob as he led them past their brother's body, his pace quickening as they traversed the devastated first floor. They exited through another door, entering a hallway that had also been ravaged, with the mangled remains of another Pyropex and a Serpaxos scattered alongside two Reapers in standard black attire.

  As the elevator descended, Lowell reached out to stroke Eva's head, but Dante swiftly shifted them both out of reach.

  Lowell examined him, his gaze searching for any sign of aggression, but all he saw was concern and pain reflected in Dante's eyes.

  "Dante–" he began, only to be met with a stern warning.

  "Do touch her," Dante's voice was dark, as he intended. While Eva's heart pulsed a bit stronger in her chest, she was still taking shallow wheezy breaths.

  “No, Dante.” Lowell took a step back as directed. “Your, um, body? We're about to pass a lot of… um, civilians.”

  He nodded, aware of the lingering demon essence that still clung to him, and worked to calm himself so he could power down.

  His eyes closed and with every agonizing slow chime of the floors they passed, Dante felt his body undergo the painful transition. He sensed his teeth retract, his height returned to normal, and his claws withdrew, accompanied by the fading of the inky black markings.

  He knew that if he were to glance down, he'd see the elevator floor cracking to release some of his power back to the Nether.

  By the fifth chime, the electricity in the air ceased and Dante opened his eyes to find Lowell and Monroe staring at him, their expressions a mix of fear, concern, and disgust. A far cry from the awe Evanora once held in her gaze.

  He was indifferent to their reactions, accustomed to this certain response. He looked down at the gorgeous woman in his arms.

  Her opinion was the only one that mattered.

  And despite everything she'd seen, she thought he was… fascinating.

  As they hastened through the lobby, they bypassed the Reapers and Keepers, who were engrossed in strategizing how to dispatch the numerous bodies back to the Nether, mitigate the property damage, and manage the evacuated residents.

  Dante, Lowell, and Monroe didn't linger, instead rushing Eva to the SUV.

  Carefully Dante maneuvered their bodies into the back seat, cradling Eva, who still struggled to breathe.

  The men took their positions up front, and the ride became a repeat of their previous journey.

  Lowell contacted his family to inform them of Eva's condition, omitting the loss of their other son. It was a conversation best had in person. Monroe reached out to the council, requesting they notify someone at the hospital to expedite their arrival, curiously leaving out the details about the demon blood.

  When questioned about the code blue, he hesitated before admitting they'd failed.

  After their calls, the atmosphere returned to being tense and quiet. The only sound was Eva's labored breathing and the hum of the engine.

  As they passed under street lamps, Dante observed a flicker of emotion returning to Eva's face. Pain.

  He felt her heart beating stronger beneath his palm, where he applied gentle pressure to her wound. The irregular rhythm of her heartbeat, as it struggled to adapt to his DNA, left him uncertain whether her strength was returning or her body was preparing to reject him.

  Finally, they arrived at the hospital, after what felt like an agonizing eternity. The streetlights faded into the darkness of the rear entrance, where their people were waiting.

  As medical staff attempted to take Eva's body from him, a fleeting expression on Dante's face gave them pause, prompting them to glance uncertainly at the men in the front seats.

  Dante reluctantly slid out of the car and carefully transferred Eva to the gurney, his gaze lingering on her as she was wheeled away.

  The faint but persistent beat of her heart beneath his touch was the only thing that kept him from clutching her body to his.

  He could only hope that the small amount of his blood she'd received had been beneficial.

  And had hopefully not taken her freewill with it.