You don't belong here.

Broken and left alone, as a child I felt abandoned and cold. I searched for what seemed like days amongst the ruins of a place that I once called home. I was scared. Then, the unthinkable happened. The very demons that killed my mother were trailing me. That fear turned into rage and that rage gave birth to my demonic essence awoken by fear and fueled by my hate.

Yamato came to life within my hands at the age of eight years. I killed them and shed no tear for it. A normal person would have fell ill by the design of my handiwork yet I felt nothing. Vindication wasn't the word I would use. Preternatural instinct drove my hand that day that rendered any creature foolish enough to enter my presence naught more than ash. The Devil within has indeed been awoken yet I still yearned for my mother's warm embrace that I would never feel again.

Upon the sight of her body just hours after the initial attack that had killed her, I knew then that I was truly alone. Dante was gone. I had no one but myself. Dante said to me that she went out to search for me, and I knew this was true. Deep down I knew. My rage was inflamed and engulfed my soul that those very flames burned my soul asunder. There was nothing left for me but what had consumed me.

Rationalizing these instances appears an excuse layered upon another and I loathe not being the one to save her. I made a promise that I could not keep and it destroyed my innocence. I made a silent vow not to allow such promises to happen again.

I suppose it bothered me on so many levels why Dante was able to make claims and promises and he was able to deliver them albeit with a heavy price tag that soon followed in his wake that consumed his meager wages. I often asked myself why he would use his powers to perform such deeds and acts of "kindness" when he was a Devil himself. He never embraced his powers until I had woken them up that day atop Temen Ni Gru. Before that fateful meeting, I had learned to live and survive by embracing the sins that made a Devil the being that I had become.

I had followers, which was an unexpected yet welcomed turn of events. These followers had given me everything I desired. When I came to age, I was given women, wine, finer things and the occasional blood sport that quickly ended in a deathmatch. These foolish followers reveled in what I could do and my ego was fed. The more I showed them my Devil's powers, the more they wanted. Perhaps it was a way to fill the void that I had lost those years ago. It matters not to me anymore. Back then those people aided my ascension to power.

The filth humankind showed me was all I knew. I didn't see the good in anyone through my shielded eyes. I didn't know love in the truest form. I saw sycophants and hedonism. Evil wasn't a word that crossed my mind. It was a label that was placed by those people on the other side of my chosen lifestyle. Arkham explained it best that he chose to embrace evil. What a bore. He killed his own wife to be at my side and yet I still didn't trust the bastard. He was a tool and nothing more.

"People inherently fear evil. There are those that embrace evil." Arkham's words were nothing more than hot air in my ears that seared into my mind forever that I wish to forget. In order to do that, it must be burned out. So many sins were committed by my own hand that I can't just wash them away. Dante was right. He needed to be with me in Hell to put an end to this corruption from surfacing again. We have become the Gatekeepers. Nothing will get out as long as we live, and we can't do this task alone.

Nero's coming of power has manifested into something far more than I could have ever imagined. How can I not see this? I underestimated him from the beginning. My arrogance served as a blinder to the truth of a great many things. I have confidence in his ability. After all, he is my son. With Dante by my side, I can finally redeem myself.

Music has a way of speaking to me when I have trouble coming up with the right words to say. I dedicated a song to Cindy. I thought it fit to her otherwise troubled day and I wanted to cheer her up.

I hadn't anticipated that Dante and I would fight as hard as we had. I cannot recall the exact event that led to my near death. I do remember the Devil taking control and after that...oh yes, Mundus. Finally, we managed to clear the air between us that surrounded Mallet.

While it was true that I had been destroyed, I was reborn in Hell with no memory of it. There were still impressions left on my soul that did indicate a memory but there was something that told me that Dante did it to save me. I would like to think so. Captivity is a fate worse than death and that has happened to me twice. Both times I deserved my fate and I hold no ill will toward my brother though I could feel his trepidation.

Maybe one day we'll move on once all these issues and ghosts of the past cease their haunting. I would like to be a family again...that is my wish.

Church.

A dreaded institution that shouldn't be allowed to exist though it does. If it wasn't for this blasted contract in trade for returning to Earth, I wouldn't have made the deal. I had to see him. Nero had grown. I can understand his anger and resentment toward me and I can not fault him for it.

The sermon was about family and while I kept a brave face through the pain as my demonic half had protested against, human curiosity held my interest. If Cindy wasn't there, I may not have stayed.

Devotion.

My father gave his to be with my mother. In that devotion, my brother and I were born. In the same sense, Nero was born from the same devotion that I had learned from my father. Perhaps that was why I had fought so hard to return. I had a reason. I have a reason to live. Nero, my son, my proof that I once loved another. Forgive me.

Innocence.

Were we ever innocent? Once we lose our innocence, we can never get it back. Dante shows more emotion than I have in the years since we were children. We used to be a formidable team. Those that dared to pick on us learned first hand that we were not just twins, we were a team. We had gotten in and out of trouble together. What happened to those days, Dante?

Imagine my surprise when I had emerged from the gate that once separated me from the Human world from the Demon world. I had once thought that if I had returned to my father's domain that I could be just like him. That day...and many that followed...took me one step closer toward obtaining the power that I had once thought I could control.

I had died twice. Once by the hand of my brother the other by the hand of Mundus though indirectly a result of Dante killing my physical form under Mundus' control. I have no memory during my time as a slave to the Dark Lord.

My eyes had opened to the bright sky. A sky that I had once looked upon as a child in my happier days of my youth. It sickens me that I could never get them back. My childhood was torn asunder the day our home was attacked and I had thought Dante was killed. I had later learned that he fled and hid just as Mother had asked him to do. The evidence was presented to me and I learned through his rat of a friend when he had mistaken me for my brother.

That is neither here nor there, though worth mentioning.

My first moments on Earth were not easy. I had trouble adjusting to breathing again and my body was weak. I felt the same the day that Dante had defeated me. The pain was nothing compared to what I had caused him. We both suffered. With my power greatly diminished, I had continued my hunt, an order given to me by the one that had given me my last test.

I mistook his message that I should complete the task in a day. I was sorely mistaken. The night came and I had found the cluster of vampires. I had thought that if I eradicated them quickly that I would be on my way and one step closer to seeing my son again. That was my wish. I was under the impression that time had not changed.

My work had just begun. I had cut down several blood feeders and some ghouls, but it wasn't enough. The stronger ones had come swiftly and I was unprepared. The sires, unbeknownst to me, kept hidden while they had sent their progeny to take care of the threat. I was that threat. Their numbers would not have been a problem should I have been at my full strength.

During their attack, they had pinned me to the ground with iron rods throughout my chest and arms. I was careless in my assessment. I had underestimated them and paid the price. While I had laid there, I had fallen into a deep and dreamless sleep. I had no idea how long I had laid there.

Sounds of birds and people stirred me from my sleep. My eyes were greeted by the sight of a graveyard. It was irony. It was much like that day when I was a child and had been left for dead after the demons attacked. I recall one vampire who tried to touch Yamato. His action resulted in a burn that caused him to drop the sword. Only three could wield it without madness taking over their mind. My father, Dante and Nero. Nero is far too young yet to handle the sword. Should the time come, he would be the one to take up Yamato and take my place.

Alas, I may never see that day arrive.

I picked myself up from the ground to have a look around. I pulled out the iron rods, though the stares from onlookers didn't catch my attention until I had realized that humans often fear what they don't understand. I was that embodiment of fear even for a moment. The rods clattered onto the ground. My chest ached from the rods. I heard a little girl scream as she clutched onto her mother's skirt. I was undeterred.

My body ached. Then I heard his voice. I knew it was Dante and I made my approach. The man with him, though I didn't know it at the time, was his date. I had never realized how time had passed until I had saw him. He was considerably older than me, perhaps as a symbol that he had surpassed me in more ways than one.

Then hope came. My brother greeted me as if nothing had happened. I had seen the years pass in that moment. Here I had remained the same and he had grown. He embraced me. I was shaken. I had learned that he was seeking revenge as I had all those years ago. Though our methods were different as well as our motivations, our goal was the same.

Our differences were too great to ignore.

The day continued with small talk and continued conversations of why I had returned. The explanation was nothing short of complicated at best. Dante, his date Pegasus and myself had stopped in at the tiny diner he frequented. The waitress, Cindy, was lively and added a charm to the place that was inviting. For the first time in years, I had ice cream. I can't recall the last time I had eaten anything. Hell didn't exactly have food, unless once could count bodies being feasted upon in the Plane of Indulgence. Everything was in excess and some were too disgusting to partake in.

A demon that didn't belong in either world above or below had a hard time surviving.

Cindy made me feel human again. Even in a small part, she didn't judge me. I was surprised, and pleasantly so, that she considered being a part of my life no matter how much I tried to deny myself.

The day had turned into evening and I couldn't stop thinking about her. It was much the same when I had met Lyla. Cindy was a lot like her in many ways. Perhaps Lyla would have turned out the same in personality if she had survived.

I find myself making these comparisons. Perhaps it is my inability to forgive myself for not saving her when I was too arrogant to accept my shortcomings. The past is how it should be. I would be lying if I didn't find myself impressed with my brother. He succeeded where I have failed.

It was time to retire to the shop. I scarcely recall admitting to my brother my true purpose and his offer to allow my presence to remain while I was here. The offer was generous, much to my chagrin, and I accepted.