Chapter 2: The Breaking Wheel

"Devil," The woman's words were coated in venom, nearly hissed as she breathed them out in her soft voice. Her eyes were near-blazing, staring daggers at Vergil, daring him to approach. No longer was she sheepishly holding her hands to her heart, as her stance widened and her weight shifted. Small hands gripped onto the wheel's handle, ready to release at a moment's notice.

Vergil let out a puff of air– his hopes for a fight weren't completely squandered. Although his hunger for a fight was sullied by her underhanded attack, he was always one to oblige to a ready opponent. He tossed his cloak aside and readied Yamato. His eyes scanned the woman, quickly observing her before making a move.

Her strength was absurd, first and foremost, able to swing a solid metal wheel with ease and speed. From the way she held steady instead of overwhelming him, it seemed like she could only perform those swings in bursts. She was waiting for him to get close again before attempting another move.

A small smile reached his lips as the anticipation of a fight burned within him. A human fighting him was laughable– this fight was over before it even started. Feeling generous, he decided to humor the woman. Keeping Yamato in its sheath, he pointed the hilt toward her and summoned blue, spectral swords around his head. The swords rotated around him before they launched toward his opponent. Air whizzed past his head with each blade thrown, targeting the woman in red as she scrambled for defence.

Swinging her body weight to the side, she angled the wheel toward him and ducked behind it for cover. He circled around to her exposed side, and she adjusted in turn. The massive wheel scraped against the brick ground as it turned to block the spectral blades; a chorus of tinks filling the air as the blades bounced off of the cool steel before dissipating. She couldn't keep rotating her wheel forever, and Vergil intended on tiring her out.

Once he noticed a slow in the wheel turning, he quickly approached– his speed making him nearly disappear then reappear next to the woman. Yamato, still in its scabbard, was swung upward into the air. Vergil intended to disarm the woman, but as his arm tensed and swung down, he watched as the woman gripped the axle of the wheel to swing it into him.

His ears rang momentarily from the blow as he was knocked in the opposite direction. Gaining his composure, he corrected himself and landed on his feet. He oriented his vision and looked back to the woman, only to be greeted with the sight of a rapidly approaching wheel rolling toward him.

Unphased by her tricks, he gripped Yamato and moved to wrench the sword in between the spokes. The wheel came to an immediate stop, but its wielder was absent. Amused with her, he quickly reached his arm out to catch her as she attempted to ambush him from the other side.

Vergil felt the woman's jugular pulse in his palm before slamming her into the ground. She gasped, wind escaping her lungs as she made contact with the ground. Her hands immediately snapped up to his own grip on her neck, clawing at it for freedom. He gave her a gentle squeeze to remind her of who was victorious in this bout.

He reversed his grip on his sword, sliding it out from the spokes of her wheel. Gingerly, he stood at full height– his hand never leaving the struggling woman's neck. The toes of her boots scraped the stone floor, she was effortlessly raised into the air.

"You must be a part of this city's guard, correct?" Vergil's words were cold, interrogating. Did the Order enlist citizen soldiers? This woman looked nowhere near like a soldier, more like a dressed down nun.

The woman stayed preoccupied with her incessant struggling, nails digging hard into his hand. He eased his fingers from her throat– he figured he would have an easier time getting answers from her if she could breathe. Sometimes he could forget his own strength– or rather– how weak humans could be.

Vergil could feel a growl vibrate in her throat, "Demon. Leave this place or die," she spit out.
"You're not good at answering questions," he mused. Releasing his hand, she dropped to the ground. She coughed, struggling to regain her breath, her hand massaging the bruise forming around her neck.

He had humored this woman enough; perhaps he was a little too enthusiastic for a fight, he couldn't help but feel disappointed at the brevity of their encounter. Still– he had to admit she was bold enough to even dare approach him, that much he could give her.
Before making his way, he took a moment to give her strange weapon a closer inspection. It was an impressively crafted– a solid hunk of steel that came up to his hip. Intricate, floral carvings decorated the felloe, crosses dotted along its circumference. Bits of the carving were outlined in gold plating, emphasizing the crosses. The hub of the wheel was entirely plated in gold, a small portrait of a veiled woman holding a thin cross and a book carved carefully in the center.

The wheel was strangely Christian for a town that worshipped Sparda, "It seems you're not from here either," he quietly remarked. He traced the carvings along the wheel with his index finger before giving it a gentle push, the medieval instrument fell flat on its side as he strode unceremoniously away.

At least, he attempted to. He felt a boot heel dig into the center of his spine– if he were a lesser being, it may have knocked him over. It was a decent kick from a human of her stature, but it only served to slightly annoy him. His head turned just enough to see the woman back on her feet. The wheel now reunited with its owner, he grit his teeth and turned to fully face her.

"I will not let a demon roam freely around," she announced flatly. "I have a duty to protect the people of this town."

Vergil scoffed at her chivalrous face; she was either very stupid or very stubborn– although both could explain her ridiculous bullheadedness. His admiration for her boldness bolstered; it was hard to completely write off a human that refused to stay down– especially one that had already been beaten by him. Taking Yamato by the hilt, he pointed the sheathed sword toward her before she could make another move on him.

"Stand down. You've already proven yourself to be an unworthy opponent, there would be no point in fighting you again," he kept his eyes steady on her own as he spoke. "I've no intentions of harming anyone here, just passing by."

Lowering his sword, he looked around the courtyard. "Besides, if you're truly committed to the people here, I'm sure destroying their homes would be ill-advised."

The woman promptly followed his gaze, just now noticing the sizable craters they had left in their tussle. Her face flooded with a bright red that matched her dress, shame punched onto her expression. The straight-laced face she had previously had all but melted back into her initial disarming one. Recounting the tiff in his head, each impression had been made by her clumsy wheel; whatever evidence there was of his spectral swords had long disappeared, and his Yamato hadn't been drawn once.

Scrambling to the first crater her wheel made, she feebly grabbed loosened bricks, attempting to fit them back into the depressed Earth. Taking advantage of her diverted attention, Vergil retrieved his cloak from the ground. As he passed by, could hear the woman quietly muttering to herself while she fumbled over the damage. Her flustered state worsened tenfold when she noticed a couple of locals flooding in from the main streets. Embarrassed squeaks now escaping her flushed cheeks, she quickly pulled her cowl back over her head and continued her fruitless endeavor.

Deciding that their encounter was over, Vergil covered himself with his cloak once more. An outlet leading to another alleyway caught his eye; eager to return to his investigation, he dipped into the shadows between the buildings and left the woman to her own woes. Before he could leave earshot, he heard the start of an unfriendly confrontation between the woman and the residents.

None of my concern.

He kept his sights on the dome-topped building in the center and did not look back.