Games Afoot [Ranka, Sazan]

[Sparda]

Ranka Darkbroode had, no doubt, come into all manner of responsibility at the head of Isafaro. Bringing the city-state's awesome military power and technological prowess fully under his control while maintaining his anonymity would not be easy. But if anyone could handle it - alongside the call for help he had just received from an ally and friend he had made contact with - it was him.

It was as if the Dark Knight had been able to sense when Ranka was alone. He chose such a moment to step out of his portal, emerging from a swirling black disc of fog with the unconscious Sazan in his arms.

"I have two favours to ask," he began immediately, the portal closing behind him. He laid Sazan upon a nearby table, and propped up her scythe next to it. "First I should explain the Hallowton situation. There's been rioting for weeks, which we believe to have been incited by an as yet unknown party with the intention of coup d'etat. One of its members, known as Scarecrow, has developed a chemical weapon for that purpose."

He gestured at the sleeping Sazan. "I've seen what it's done to Sazan's mind... It mimics the hallucinations of the Nightmare. I need you to have her treated, and to see if it will be possible to study this gas and devise an antidote.

"Secondly... The two of us attempted to apprehend Scarecrow, and failed miserably. He had a bodyguard calling himself Jean Vilain, who was able to manipulate shadow. Trapped us in a warehouse using a shield he called a kakai barrier while Scarecrow made his escape."

The devil turned fully to face Ranka. "I want to tap your resources here to track Scarecrow back down, then bring you to Hallowton to help me bring him in."

[Ranka]

Ranka was in his private office at the top of the central Isafaro tower when Sparda emerged from his portal. He immediately dialed a series of numbers on his desk phone linking him to the emergency services of his building which, thankfully, were only a few floors down.

''I need a med team right now.''

Thanks to the Red Queen he had been following the events in Hallowton via live feed and had already dispatched a set of teams to study the new weapon manufactured by Scarecrow as well as the kakai barrier. Having an active, live specimen of the gas only made matters simpler to produce an antidote. It took precisely a minute for the paramedics to arrive through the door and take Sazan's body down to the medical facility. Ranka prompted Sparda to follow him down as they took her. He took his phone with him to keep tabs on the progress of his task forces. Already, the trans-dimensional liaisons were in the process of contacting the Red Queen about the kakai barrier. Intelligence had also leaked his presence in Vulture's old office to the rebellion. No doubt Imai was already conjuring up a plan for a tactical insurrection and dispose of him. He had began typing up Jean Vilain's name in the central database when the AI beat him to it and put the dossier on the shadow manipulator on display. The wheel was turning fast.

He handed the touch-screen to Sparda so he could view the data gathered on the men who had destroyed Hallowton's castle. ''I guess we found our opportunity.''

[Sparda]

Ranka's response was swift and efficient, as expected. Sparda was truly grateful to have Isafaro's enormous resources now on his side. He followed Ranka through the building, carrying Sazan's scythe. When they reached the terminal where Ranka pulled up his existing documents on Vilain, Sparda perused the touch screen with his off hand, reading through what was there.

"Incredible. It's a wonder Isafaro didn't already rule all of Jherra with an iron fist, with such fast intelligence gathering backing up its military might." What information was there confirmed his existing suspicions about the extent of Vilain's power.

"One on one, I'm quite confident I can take him. It's keeping them from leveraging use of the gas on civilians against my willingness to keep fighting that will be the problem, which is why I'll need to be able to track them right back down so we can plan how best to get the drop on them."

[Ayen]

“It's time to wake up, Sazan.”

The effects of the drug was beginning to wear off on its own as Sazan came to. Blinded by the lights up above only for a second before her vision slowly started to clear. At first she thought she had been taken to Harker's Industries but as her vision finally cleared one thing about the clothes of the doctor would betray them. The Vulture Insignia on their right breast. Immediately she knew where she was, and immediately she had begun to take action getting up from the table she was placed on. They tried to restrain her but her fingers penetrated their flesh and blood erupted from the veins, covering her body and being absorbed by it to make her stronger. Five doctors were in the room to work on her, that were five families who loss their fathers. Five families who would pin the blame on the Vulture and join the Resistance strengthening its revolve and further ensuring success of Imai's infiltration and assassination attempt against Ranka. Assuming someone else didn't get to him first.

Her eyes spotted him and a rage she hasn't felt in ages all came flooding back as the memories of her time with Devil May Cry resurfaced. The Judas had returned and he was in her sights. Her power went up to full and similar to a way her brother would DT, a burst of power ignited her Witch Within form. Dressed in a pair of black witch robes minus the hat and shoes, her hair longer and going down to her back pass her shoulders just like her mother used to do in this form. Skin white as snow and veins as black as night and transparent as she raised up her hand. The palm facing Ranka as she summoned all the elements of the earth and unleashed it into a single beam of destruction that would obliterate its target upon contact and they would feel like Mother Nature herself was kicking them in the ass.

[Ranka]

Ranka immediately snapped into motion and took the wireless phone from Sparda's hands as Sazan woke from the operation table in a fury. He fumbled through a series of network at lightning speed during the time it took her to drain the blood of the nearby nurses that had just saved her life. When he finally came upon what he was looking for she was already in the process of activating the Witch Within, and the damn thing was loading.

He lifted his eyes from the screen to see the elements converging unto a single point. He could see the same rage into Sazan's eyes as he had in Maricul years ago during one of their confrontations. For a moment the vampire could help himself thinking what a fucked up family.

The screen came to life just as the attack was launched, and Ranka wasted no time activating the same devices Bane had used during his attack on Hallowton to debilitate any and all supernatural ability within the city. As it turned out, the vicious magical onslaught disintegrated in mid-air before it even reached it's target, and the devastating aura of the witch died down until it vanished utterly as Sazan's powers were locked by the carefully-hidden device within the building. The few scientists remaining stared at the scene in shock, the image of their colleagues being killed still flashing in their minds.

''Leave now.''

They needn't be told twice. Ranka knew he was going to write up a series of paid full-year sabbatical to a few of his employees. Never taking his eyes off Sazan, he waited until the last doctor had made his way out of the vicinity to address his violent guest.

''Congratulations: You just killed a team of men who dedicated the last moments of their careers to save you.'' He said without making any efforts to hide his contempt towards what had just occurred. ''Always a pleasure to see you, Sazan.''

[Sparda]

A null field generator? Little surprise there, and just in the nick of time. Sparda allowed himself a quick sigh of relief as Ranka addressed his rather belligerent patient.

"I'll be brief," he began. "You hallucinated, didn't you? Morbid, terrifying visions. The gas Scarecrow's manufacturing emulates the effect of the Nightmare on new infectees." He stepped forward, raising a hand as if seeking to calm the young hybrid. He had considered on the way here that if there was one saving grace about him opposing Scarecrow, it was that his mastery of the true Nightmare would render him immune to the gas' effects.

"I brought you here so we can study the gas and develop an antidote, and so I can enlist Ranka's help apprehending Scarecrow and his bodyguard. And I am not in the mood to entertain objections after what they did to you and to the castle."

[Ayen]

Ranka's calculations were off a tad the null-field generators that Bane used and Isafaro's deployed in their fights were only effective against supernatural abilities of unholy origin. The Witch Within was not an unholy power nor was it a holy one. It was a neutral entity that called on the power of both. The null-field was successful in removing the elements in the beam with unholy variables but the rest of the beam remained untouched and Sazan's form remained despite the field's present. The attack would miss because Ranka and Sparda weren't idiots who'd just stand there and stare at the pretty colors. It would continue on its path, obliterating the scientists who fled the room and breaking on through to the next, and the next, killing soldiers in its wake before breaking out the tower and blowing a helicopter out of the sky by grazing its side. The chopper crashed and was set ablaze as the pilot's cells regenerated and turned him into a zombie that was now on fire setting a building on fire and biting people spreading the virus of the Vulture. The cells would mutate as time went on and abominations would be born as the beam continued to take out the next four blocks before burning out.

''Congratulations: You just killed a team of men who dedicated the last moments of their careers to save you. Always a pleasure to see you, Sazan.''

“Don't talk.”

"I'll be brief. You hallucinated, didn't you? Morbid, terrifying visions. The gas Scarecrow's manufacturing emulates the effect of the Nightmare on new infectees. I brought you here so we can study the gas and develop an antidote, and so I can enlist Ranka's help apprehending Scarecrow and his bodyguard. And I am not in the mood to entertain objections after what they did to you and to the castle."

“You brought me to an enemy of the crown and to a traitor.”

Her words were filled with hatred as she narrowed her eyes at the two. Meanwhile outside the tower a great storm was forming, a large and powerful hurricane raised up over the tower and was ready to come smashing down on top of it to wipe out the Vulture's core and bring an end to the war in one fair swoop.

“Familiar?”

And the hurricane came crashing down to destroy everything.

[Red Queen]

A barrier formed around the tower just as the hurricane shattered. Rebounding off the barrier and continuing on its destructive path to the area around it, wiping out the undead and abominations that were created in the collateral of the previous attack. There would be a heavy clean up to do later but the tower would remain standing. As for Sazan she would find herself in a cage of energy in the room locking her and her power inside. An updated null-field to jam the magic within Sazan. And if she touched it it would electrify her at a high enough frequency to return the obliteration she had granted the researchers and soldiers who fell in the path of her beam.

“You sure do have a way with women.”

Said the Red Queen, appearing on a window on Ranka's phone.

“Want me to eliminate her?”

[Ranka]

Ranka didn't need to glance over his phone to recognize the digitized voice of the AI. Looking at the destruction of the laboratory along with the few obituaries already popping up on his mental list of things to do for the day, he had to admit to that the Red Queen's proposition was as tempting as it was morally justifiable.

''Thank you for your timely intervention.'' He sighed. The Red Queen easily understood that she wasn't to harm Sazan without his explicit consent. He looked over his phone to see how he had confused Vulture's old null-field generator with the upgrade. Of course the two devices were side-by-side on the list and he had horribly miscliked. Why the outdated version was even an option on his wireless network was beyond him. Someone was getting fired, and it had been a long time since he had drank any blood. Somehow he thought those two seemingly unconnected events were about to become acquainted. He returned his attention to Sazan.

''I've had quite enough of the Bitch Within for a few lifetimes.'' He said a lot more callously than what was usual even for him. He approached the cage with deadly intent, stopping short of it's searing energy field. ''Unless you were far too high to realize it, Hallowton's castle has been blown to bits by a gang of terrorists.'' He continued, peering into her eyes through his dark bangs. He was completely focused on her now. His hair was noticeably shorter than it was when the woman had last seen him, and his usual mercenary garb had been replaced with a classy corporate suit. Somehow, that made the idea of the vampire even more threatening than ever. ''Vulture's dead, and this presents us with a fantastic opportunity to not declare full-out war between the two nations.'' He explained, his heart black with sarcasm. ''I hope to appeal to your common-sense when I say this, and make you understand that I want these men delivered to your Queen along with all their assets.'' He said finally, before turning to Sparda and handing him the phone again.

[Sparda]

Sparda took the offered phone and glanced down at the list of devices. Deciding he didn't trust himself with it, he backed out to the home screen, then locked and pocketed it. He trusted Ranka would ask for it if he needed it, but with this AI on hand, he doubted that.

"Just calm down," he sighed in Sazan's direction. "I don't want to have to take your corpse back to Hallowton with me because of your stubborn insistence that Ranka's the villain here."

[Ayen]

Sazan found herself trapped in an energy square like a rat in a cage. She was blocked off from the front, the rear, the left, the right and of course the top. The Hybrid dared not touch any part of the energy in fear of being taken out now that her abilities were seal. The two were talking but she wasn't listening.

“Didn't anyone ever tell you? There's one thing you never put in a trap, if you're smart. If you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there's one thing you never, ever put in a trap.”

She paused.

“Me.”

Sazan drew the 11mm Blessing from her jacket and fired at the floor, shooting the bullets through it in a circle which caused the ground beneath her feet to collapse and sent her crashing into the corridor below. Taking a step forward after the fall she raised the 11mm up and then fired another shot that blew through the ceiling sending the bullet between the space of Ranka's feet. He wouldn't enjoy her target.

[Red Queen]

Red Queen's response was immediate. As Sazan dropped to the corridor below another null-field engulfed it to keep her powers bounded but it looked like she wasn't limited to the Witch Within in what she could do. Shock Troops were dispatched to the floor and entered the room behind Sazan firing their rifles. The auto-targeting system ensuring the shots hit even with superhuman speed plus it was harder to miss in such a narrow corridor to begin with.

[Ranka]

Ranka's reaction was instantaneous as soon as he saw her pull the gun. He rolled backwards behind the medical debris as Sazan made her escape, soon seeing the shot aimed at him pass right through the floor and lodge into the ceiling above. He had no time to waste. He gave Sparda a quick glance before speaking.

''I have to get my suitcase.'' He said over the sound of gunfire below. ''It's in my office.'' He admitted at length, before sprinting down the door and disappearing into the hallway. He damned well hope the Legendary Dark Knight would keep collateral to a minimum.

[Ayen]

Unfortunately for the Red Queen Sazan hasn't been spending the past two years sitting on her ass. She's been studying up on the biggest threat in Jherra and remained two steps ahead of them as she removed her jacket and launched it forward as cover for her own fire. Unloading several shots with the 11mm Blessing at the monitors on the side of their guns that worked the auto-targeting. Without that the soldiers didn't know what else to do but stand there like morons as she entered the room next over. The control room. More rounds went off as the people in the room were put to rest and the Hybrid sealed off the room to make sure no one else could get inside and went to work.

If there was one thing that the people of Domino City forgot it was that Sazan was an expert at computers and computer hacking. And right in the center of Isafaro's Core she was in heaven. Sazan took one of the cellphones off a dead guard and had a seat in front of one of the computers beginning the process of hacking the Red Queen, slipping through her firewalls and disabling the barrier outside of the tower for her next call to come through. By the time it was offline she had already dialed and the phone was ringing.

“I need a pick-up.

Sparda.

Check under the E's.

Now hit send.

See you soon.”

While Sazan was talking to her contact she made sure to keep the others busy. The moment Ranka reached the top floor where his office was located he found the whole floor's power cut off and gassed. Granted, he didn't need to worry about that but if he wanted his men to be worth more than choking he was gonna have to turn the gas off and the power back on. Another reason why was Security Protocol number 45. The office was sealed off and fortify to where Sparda in full Devil Trigger couldn't break in if he wanted to. Ranka was cut off from Pandora and the only way to undo it was turning on the power.

Meanwhile the room Sparda was in was sealed off and if he thought of using that hole Sazan created he'd find the floor below also sealed off putting up yet more obstacles in his way. And with the updated null-fields set to where they were he was also limited in what he could do and Red Queen wouldn't allow anyone to turn off the null-fields as that would mean the Witch Within would be back in full swing. With all the things Red Queen had to do she wouldn't have time to listen in on a simple phone call or trace it. Sazan would make sure of that. Not only was the room sealed off, the cameras were out and the sound to the room was muted. After the phone call was finished Sazan deleted the number and crushed the phone in her bare hand. Her other hand never once left the panel it was moving on to keep the hack going.

[Marvel Universe]

Tony Stark was in his new penthouse at Harker's Industry watching an old black and white movie with Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC playing in the background when his cellphone went off. He looked at it and raised an eyebrow when the call came from Isafaro of all places. He knew he was famous but not THAT famous. Curious, Stark brought the cellphone to his ear way too cocky to think anything more of it.

"Hello?"

I need a pick-up.

"Sazan? Is there a reason you're calling from Isafaro?"

Sparda.

"Which one is he again? Because you know I keep forgetting."

Check under the E's.

"I would have thought it'd be under S."

Stark rolled across the room in his chair on wheels and turned on his computer. Picking up a file that Sazan left behind for him and pulling it up. He saw a category listed as "Endgame" and when he went under it he found several names listed: Amoura, Sparda, Arix, Dante and Ranka. Ranka had a flashing red dot to it so he assumed that was the place to look. He clicked on the name and his dossier came up. Sazan had obviously planned ahead in case something like this happened.

"Clever girl."

Now hit send.

Stark hit send and Ranka's dossier just went to every person of relevance, that included the Resistance who now had all the information they needed to plan the perfect assassination attempt against him as he stood up from his chair.

"I'm on my way to get you."

See you soon.

Stark hanged up and if Red Queen was able to get his number, it wouldn't matter. He'd dispose of it and lead them to a dead end. Sazan owed him a phone. Leaving his penthouse he went down to where one of Harker's carriers were and just helped himself.

"Yeah, I just need to borrow this over here. Harker won't mind? Great. Send him a fruit basket for me."

With the pod that could turn into his armor by his side, Stark took off with one of Harker's carriers and made his way to Isafaro's airspace.