Fan Fiction ❯ The Fragile (No One Like You: Revisited) ❯ We're In This Together ( Chapter 1 )

As she walked down the street she heard the sound of metal clinking against metal. She paused, listening closely, and finally came to the conclusion that the noises were coming from the alley behind her. Walking calmly down the street, the noises became louder. She could hear the taunting being thrown in between attacks by some man. And from that second she knew who it was. Though, the woman had never heard his voice before but she was confident. Turning into the alley she saw him, finally. Every time he swung his sword, his hair flowed but landed in the same place it started. She looked him over carefully and chuckled as she saw his face. He was loving the fighting. He looked like a kid in a candy store. But, from the swift change of expressions, she knew that the man had heard her.

He looked over to the shadows where she was, though he didn't see her, and immediately came to regret that. One of the demons he was fighting plunged its dagger into his gut. He rolled his eyes, making her laugh again. Looking up, he smiled to the shadows in her direction, grabbed Ebony and twisted around, grinning because he caused himself more harm. He pressed the barrel of the gun against the demon's head and pulled the trigger. He stood up straight but was grabbed from behind by another demon. It was the last one and it pressed the dagger further into him.

"You dumb fu-" He started to say but another gun, that wasn't his, was fired off. The bullet landed in the demon's head, right between the eyes. He looked back to the shadows and saw the woman walk out of them. The man nodded at her because the bullet had missed him by less than an inch and he knew it had been purposely done.

"So, you're the one every one's got on their minds." She said as she holstered her gun.

"Just them." He said, gesturing at the bodies on the ground and pulling out the dagger.

"No. Not just them."

"Who are you?"

"I suppose you can call me Elise."

"Alright then, Elise, what do you want?"

She tried to throw a punch at him but he quickly drew his sword and used the blade to block himself. It sliced easily into her arm a few inches. Dante almost felt sorry to hurt such a beautiful woman. Her long brown hair cascaded around her face as she fell to her knees. She looked up at him with piercing green eyes. He opened his mouth to say something but she stopped him by standing up and showing Dante her arm. There was no longer a wound. Elise smiled wickedly, provoking him to swing his sword at the same level her neck was on. But, the woman was much too quick. In the same instant he started swinging she dropped to the ground and swung her leg, dropping him to the ground.

Elise drew her guns and started firing but Dante rolled backward as soon as he hit the ground. Sensing uselessness, she dropped them out of her grip. Patiently standing there, Elise was waiting while Dante walked over to her. He swung again but she stopped the blade by grabbing it in her left hand. She brought the other around to meet his cheek. He stumbled back under the force of her punch but steadied himself by digging the point of his sword into the ground. She headed towards him and then kicked him right where the dagger had embedded itself. Dante groaned loudly. But she wasn't finished. Only a second later she kicked his left side with her right foot then quickly jumped up and turned her body around and brought her left heel up and around to kick Dante's head. When she landed her coat flowed out behind her. He fell down, again.

Dante tried to get up but Elise pushed him down. Drawing out a long, sleek knife she straddled his waist and pressed it to his neck.

"You're good." He said, relish the moment. The fact that a woman, as beautiful as Elise, was able to beat him in a fight was enough to make him crazy. Not to mention the fact that she had him in this position. She pressed her other hand against his chest, forcing him even harder against the cold ground, and leaned down close to him. He relaxed a good deal.

"Thank you." She spoke softly.

"You're welcome." Dante said with a hint of impression on his voice.

"You have no idea why I'm here, do you?"

"Nope." He replied as he brought his hand around and pulled the knife away from his throat.

Dante jumped up and switched the whole situation around. He managed to throw her back up against the wall and disarm her in the same movement. Pinning her up alongside the wall with his body, he drew Ivory and pressed it to her temple. She tried to squirm away from him but he held her there. He noticed that her breathing was even, unlike his. "So, why don't you tell me?"

"I was sent here to warn you."

"What, so you try to kill me?" He scoffed.

Elise moved her arm to try and stop him but he switched the safety off. "Don't try it."

"I wasn't going to and I wasn't trying to kill you. I just wanted to make sure it was really you."

"And who else would I be?"

"I've seen men try to be you."

"Didn't know I was that famous."

"Well you are."

"What did you want to tell me?" Dante said as he pulled back and holstered his gun, letting her get away from the wall.

"He's coming for you." He looked up.

"Who?"

Elise walked over to his sword and picked it up, admiring its beauty. "Sarlone." She walked over to him and passed it into his hands. He took it gently.

"Who's he?"

"An ancient man. He's very powerful, mind you. And he hasn't aged because of all that power."

"Why's he coming for me?" He holstered his sword and Ebony.

"Every generation houses a Hunter, correct?"

Dante nodded.

"Well, ever since he was created he has tracked and killed every one of them. And now it's your `turn.'"

"So, I've got a man on my tracks."

"Yes but you saw the fight we just had. I could've killed you. Just think, if he's stronger than me and I wasn't even using all of my power, how will you defeat him?"

"Don't know. I'll improvise."

"That doesn't exist when you're fighting him. Pain does. Victory doesn't, either. Not even for you."

"Well, then what do you want me to do?"

Elise started to respond but voices were coming from the street right outside of the alley. "Quickly, up here." She motioned to the roof.

There was a window ledge on the side so she ran up the wall and jumped over to it. Dante jumped right onto the roof. Realizing she wasn't down far, he stretched over the edge of the roof and reached his hand down. Elise grabbed it and he hauled her up. She landed in his arms but hurriedly pushed away and knelt down, watching the men down there.

"Thanks." She whispered without even looking over.

"Yeah." He leaned in close to her so they couldn't hear. "Who are they?"

"They look like… oh shit." She shook her head in denial.

"What?"

"That man down there, the one in the medieval clothing," she pointed to show Dante. "He is Sarlone."

He looked around at the demons. The dead demons. "Looks like the Hunter was here. But…" he picked up the dagger and licked it. "Either he's better than we expected or someone was here with him.

Dante felt a knot in his gut as Sarlone licked his blood on the dagger. Like part of him knew something and wouldn't share the knowledge. He saw Elise look over at the wound from the dagger, then up at him. He lifted up his black shirt but just enough to show her that it was healed. He never would have done that to just anyone. But somewhere inside of him, he recognized that name of hers and felt that he'd known her before.

"He knows you're here."

"Let's hope he doesn't."

"Why? What difference would it make?"

"A big one. If he finds out, he may just make your suffering even more intolerable than he already has planned. Instead of an hour, he may go for a day."

"All because you're here?"

"Oh, you have no idea how much he hates me. He'd do anything to watch me suffer including hurting you worse."

Dante realized and was shocked by what she was implying. "I know you, don't I?"

"You're supposed to."

"Why?" She grabbed his shoulder and pulled him down onto the roof. "What are yo-" his words were stopped as she clamped her hand down over his mouth.

Then Dante understood why. "Boys, check up there. I heard someone."

Elise removed her hand. "You really need to learn when to be quiet."

"They're coming up here."

"I know. And if they see us, Sarlone will come for you and I'm not ready."

He looked over at her, puzzled. "Forget it. We need to get out of here. Come on." He led her over to another roof. From there she could see his red motorcycle.

He flipped off the roof, followed by Elise who landed on her knee with a hand on the ground, looking back. Sarlone's men were running, quickly nearing the motorcycle.

"Now!" Dante yelled. She looked over to see he had already mounted and started up the motorcycle.

One of Sarlone's cronies drew a gun and started firing with a grim smile spread across his face. She climbed on behind Dante and wrapped an arm around his waist. Bullets were whizzing by them. "Hold on tight."

Elise wrapped her other arm around his waist. He heard her yell out so he looked back. A bullet had lodged itself in her shoulder, another in her side. Dante sped off towards Devil Never Cry. It was a short ride, especially at the speed he was going. They arrived within minutes.

He grabbed his keys from his jeans pocket and opened the door for her, all the while watching the road they'd just come from. Elise walked in, holding her side. Closing the door and locking it, Dante walked in behind her and saw the holes in her coat where the bullets had passed through. "Take your coat off."

She was a little nervous, at first, but got over it as she took it off. He took it and placed it over one of the chairs, then looked at her in that moment and thought she was even more beautiful. She was wearing a light, black tank top and a pair of jeans that fit her very nicely. He could see the strong muscles in her arms. Dante was caught.

"Hang on." She watched as he went into his bathroom and came out with a semi-wet cloth.

"Why are you doing this?" Asked Elise as he came back over to her.

"You probably saved my life back there. And, besides, you still haven't finished." He wiped off the blood that had escaped from the bullet holes.

"Finished? Oh. Yeah, you're right, I haven't."

"I know. But first, shouldn't these wounds be gone by now?" Elise looked over her shoulder and at Dante.

"I can't heal bullet wounds as quickly."

"That's gotta suck."

"It does but I can do this." She took a deep breath and reached one finger into her wound and dug out the bullet. Dante smiled.

"Shit… you really want that out, don't you?"

"Watch." He obeyed and saw the hole disappear.

"Now that is a handy trick."

"It is. Nobody ever taught you that before?"

"No. But what about the other one?"

"Guess I'll have to get that out, too." She did the exact same thing to the other wound on her side. "And…?" She showed him the bullets in her hand.

Dante nodded to the garbage can by his desk. He sat in his large leather chair and motioned for her to do likewise. "Alright, where were we?"

"I believe you'd just let me down from the wall you'd thrown me up against and were inquiring forcibly about why I was here. Oh, nice." She was looking over at his "trophy wall." "God, I'd love to see Sarlone's head up there."

Dante looked from Elise to the wall, and then shook his head with a smile on his face. "Okay, you were sent here to warn me about him."

"Yes. And for good reason."

"What might that be?"

"Well, let me say this in a little story. One of my old friends was a Hunter. His name was Oliver and he was the best ever, until you came along, of course. We were… really close. And since Sarlone couldn't defeat him in a fight he decided to take another path to kill Oliver. Because he is the most twisted fuck I've ever met, he kidnapped me and told Oliver to choose. He said that either he came to rescue me and gave himself up in the process or he stayed alive and Sarlone would kill me. It's really obvious what he did. But Sarlone didn't just kill him. No, that would've been too easy and quick. He raped Oliver." Dante looked up at her.

"Raped him?"

"Yeah, and it wasn't `ordinary' rape, either. Sarlone did it for days. He would contact me and tell me everything that he did and he would let me listen to Oliver's screams and cries for help. Every generation, he wants to break the Hunter and in that one…" Elise sniffled. "He did. In the worst way imaginable. So, I came here to tell you what could and probably would happen if he gets you."

Elise stood up, grabbed her coat, and slipped it on. "Listen, what I really want to say is just be careful, okay? I don't want to hear that Sarlone got you and did the same thing. I just… don't wanna hear that."

Dante reluctantly walked over to the door and unlocked it for her. "Are you sure you should be going out there like this?"

Elise realized what he was trying to say. "It's better than having you come along. I'd have to worry about you getting back here safely. And I'm so sick of worrying."

"Okay…"

"You lock that door, alright? And be careful." He nodded and watched her walk away, into the night.