Devil May Cry - No Longer Human

25 - Even Faster

It was too hot.

His very skin, beginning to melt and char till it began to reach the depth of his bones and organs together.

It was too hot.

The laughter was ever present, ringing through his burning ears while the flames of torment continued to increase its hunger for his blood.

It was...to hot.

The shouting noise of two voices calling his name was muffled through the flames. For every bit of strength and power the brothers possessed, to the boy it always felt as though they had very little to show to him. Perhaps it was maybe his own lacklustre that caused him to say such things in his mind. They were powerful and almighty compared to the demon who held him tight. Neither Dante nor Vergil had anything that could separate the remaining soul the demon had left to heal itself to do the opposite instead to him.

It...too...ho..t.

It was a wonder how his [Barrier] was attempting to still protect him from the flames even when he could no longer feel his body anymore. His very soul told him his remaining limbs were still intact and not scattered away as ash to the flames. Joshua could negate his [Barrier] immediately if he gave a simple thought to do so, yet he wondered as to why he couldn't do so.

"Joshua!/Joshua!"

Shut...up.

He couldn't concentrate from the laughter demon and the screaming of the brothers. He was too tired. Even if the demon felt as though he was victorious, why was it satisfied with this much? It lost the power of Sparda. It couldn't kill his sons, and it was dying while simply killing a mere human child. It was a pathetic victory which was a win at all.

However, Joshua's goal was complete. The demon was the beginning of his nightmare, and he had accomplished his task in making the demon be on its last breath. Yet the satisfaction the demon had was not replicated by the boy. There was no such thing as a happy ending for him now. Only emptiness. Into nothing. To join his mother completely...and father.

"Ah...I remember...." Joshua's tears evaporated the moment it left his eyes, the droplets continued to fall nonetheless without stopping. "My dad was...ready...dead." The small piece of confusion of his father's disappearance was realised upon the demon beside him finally dead, its laughter no longer loud but still present around the air. His parents died together, yet the memories were stolen by the devil. It devoured for nourishment, it extracted for growth, and it stole memories to learn from others why making others forget completely.

Joshua's love for his mother was strong enough to prevent the same from forgetting her as well.

It didn't matter anymore. He didn't care anymore. He didn't was to speculate anymore. He just wanted to finally rest.

"I'm not letting you die!"

The muffled shout that was directed towards him became all too clear to him. It confused him for a moment as to which of the brother shouted out towards him as the view of orange flames was seemingly chopped away. Ah, was it Vergil?

It's...cold...now.

"Hey, Joshua!" Dante immediately rushed ahead the moment the flames left an entrance upon disappearing. "Stay with us!" Searching through his pockets, he brought out his magic pouch, instantly enveloping his whole arm inside to grasp a potion. The sudden widened eyes revealed all too well the silent indication that there was nothing that could help the boy. "No!" Dante growled as he slammed his pouch down, pulling out a simple green vital star which he forced the boy to gulp down. While it began to heal some burnt skins and damages, what was required was not what he currently had. "Vergil! You have to have something?!"