KanColle X Devil May Cry: Devil Trigger Protocol

Naka wrinkled her nose. "It stinks here!"

Tatsuta and her group had reached the midpoint of the third-floor passage, the same place where Akagi's team fought the Damned Chessmen. The lingering stench of Hiei's curry, infamous from Yokosuka's cafeteria and training grounds, clung to the air.

Murakumo sighed. "They used curry, didn't they?"

"Run!" Suzuya shouted, fleeing the foul odor as the group hurried deeper into the passage.

The battle between the carrier and battleship shipgirls grew fiercer.

Shoukaku's shade sneered. "So, you'll kill us again?"

Kaga's voice was heavy. "It's true we couldn't do anything. It was like letting you die."

"Then admit it and die already!" Shoukaku's shade snapped.

Kaga's eyes narrowed. "That's not an option."

"Why…!" Shoukaku's shade cried.

"We have a duty," Kaga said firmly. "To protect the Admiral. As the First Carrier Division, we can't lose to the Fifth."

Shoukaku's shade screamed as sudden cannon fire struck her—not from Kongou or Hiei, but from Tatsuta's group, firing as they approached.

Soryu's face lit up. "You came!"

Junyou grimaced. "You guys are wrecked."

Suzuya groaned. "Ugh, just battleships and carriers?"

Kitakami waved lazily. "Kept you waiting, huh?"

Yuubari added, "Though we're low on ammo."

Houshou nodded. "We're in the same boat."

Jintsuu said, "All we've got left is curry."

Silence fell.

Houshou broke it. "We don't know if it'll work, but use what we have."

Tatsuta's eyes gleamed. "Where's Tenryuu-chan?"

Houshou replied, "We sent her ahead."

"Then let's sink these fakes fast~" Tatsuta purred.

Altar Room

The battle raged on.

"Dodge!" Akagi shouted.

"Whoa!?" Tenryuu yelped.

"Hanya!?" Inazuma squeaked.

Orbs of magical energy shot from a gate Jester summoned, bouncing like wild pinballs. Akagi, Tenryuu, and Inazuma, facing Jester for the first time, struggled to keep up.

Dante growled, "Still as annoying as ever!"

Having repelled Jester three times at Temen-ni-gru, Dante was unfazed but irritated.

Jester flailed dramatically. "Wait, wait, wait!"

Dante swung Beowulf, sending Jester flying.

"Feels good," Dante said with a smirk.

"Excuse me!" Jester sprang up, mounting a sphere with a grotesque face. Hands sprouted from the ground.

Tenryuu gaped. "What the hell!?"

The sphere's mouth spat bombs.

Akagi gasped, "Bombs!?"

The sphere charged alongside the bombs.

Inazuma panicked. "What do we do!?"

The magical orbs kept bouncing chaotically.

Dante roared, "Just die already!"

Jester whined, "Holy, holy, that's harsh!"

Dante leaped, firing Ebony & Ivory, then strummed Nevan, unleashing bats with Air Play. Alternating attacks, he stayed airborne, hammering Jester.

Third Floor

Hiryu's shade screamed, "GYAAA!"

Curry shells melted the Deep Sea Ships and fake shipgirls.

Junyou gagged. "Gross."

Soryu whispered, "Sorry, Hiryu…"

Akatsuki cried, "Hibiki!"

Hibiki's shade whimpered, "How could you, Akatsuki, Ikazuchi…"

Ikazuchi stood silent.

Haruna's shade murmured, "Big sister…"

Kirishima's shade gasped, "Why…?"

Kongou's voice was firm. "I'm not your sister."

Kaga faced Shoukaku's shade. "Shoukaku…"

"Why… Kaga-san…" Shoukaku's shade faltered.

"Sleep," Kaga said coldly.

"D-Why…" Shoukaku's shade vanished with the Deep Sea Ships.

Satsuki blinked. "I thought curry only worked on demons?"

Houshou explained, "They're fakes, tied to demons."

Naka coughed. "Forget that, the smell's killing me. Let's go."

The shipgirls chased after Akagi's group.

Altar Room

Dante activated Quicksilver's Time Lag, slowing everything but himself. He slashed Jester with Rebellion, sending him crashing into the altar. Jester rolled across the floor, motionless.

Akagi hesitated. "…Did we win?"

Inazuma cheered, "We did it!"

Tenryuu grumbled, "Beating that clown doesn't feel like a win."

Jester had fought absurdly, throwing up barriers to monologue or goof off. It wasn't a serious battle, and Tenryuu couldn't celebrate.

Dante eyed the altar. "Gotta close that demon gate."

"How?" Inazuma asked.

"Smash that mirror, for starters," Dante said.

As he approached, Jester's body floated, enveloped in black mist. The mist formed a sphere, swelling. Dante and the others watched, unsure of what was happening.

Throne Room

Ooi scanned the chamber. "This place is different."

The shipgirls had reached the throne room.

Shigure pointed. "Isn't that like the one in the workshop?"

Hatsuyuki murmured, "…Divinity Statue."

A Divinity Statue stood in the room.

Yuubari mused, "Heard about these. Can we make ammo or fuel?"

Akashi had considered it but never tried.

Jintsuu tilted her head. "Maybe… legends say they produce items from ancient alchemy."

Hiei grinned. "We collected Red Orbs from demons. Wanna try?"

Yuubari's eyes sparkled. "Let's do it! What first?"

Hatsuyuki said, "Safe bet: Vital Star."

Soryu raised an eyebrow. "Hatsuyuki, you're prepared…"

Unbeknownst to the others, Hatsuyuki had asked Dante about the statue's abilities. She used a Vital Star, and her injuries vanished.

Hatsuyuki frowned. "…Hm?"

"What's wrong?" Miyuki asked.

Hatsuyuki deployed her rigging—fully repaired.

Satsuki gasped, "Your rigging's fixed!"

Yuubari beamed. "This is crazy useful!"

Using Red Orbs, Yuubari made Vital Stars for everyone.

"Next, ammo and fuel," Yuubari said.

Kitakami asked, "Can it do that?"

Hatsuyuki shrugged. "If not, Holy Water."

They tried, and ammo and fuel appeared.

Shiratsuyu blinked. "It worked…"

Fumizuki chirped, "No more expeditions!"

Murakumo scoffed, "Red Orbs are limited, so expeditions are still a thing."

Hatsuyuki said, "Holy Water next."

Yuubari winced. "Used up all the orbs."

Hatsuyuki slumped, crestfallen.

Ooi sighed, "Give it up."

Houshou rallied, "We're resupplied. Let's move."

They entered the passage behind the throne.

Altar Room

The sphere encasing Jester pulsed like a heartbeat.

Tenryuu's voice trembled. "Admiral, this looks bad, doesn't it?"

Dante stayed silent.

Something emerged from the sphere—a dragon-like demon, bearing Jester's traits. Its massive form forced Dante and the others back. The sphere vanished.

"Dan…te…" Jester's voice rumbled.

Tenryuu gaped. "That's Jester!?"

Akagi's eyes widened. She knew this demon from her dream, where Dante fought it to his death.

Dante smirked. "Doesn't matter what you look like. I'll take you down."

He slashed with Rebellion, but Jester didn't resist. Black mist appeared, healing Jester's wounds instantly.

"Useless!" Jester roared.

Tentacles sprouted from his shoulders, lashing at Dante. Dante leaped onto one, running along it while firing Ebony & Ivory. Jester flapped his wings, unleashing a gale that blew Dante, Akagi, Tenryuu, and Inazuma to the room's edge. Akagi's planes crashed in the wind.

"You're tired, Dante," Jester taunted. "You're no match for me now."

"Don't get cocky just because you changed forms!" Dante snapped.

Dante charged again, Akagi launched more planes, and Tenryuu and Inazuma fired in support. But Jester's wounds healed instantly, rendering their attacks futile. Unfazed, Jester spoke.

"I'm linked to this temple," Jester said. "Thanks to you filling it with battle energy, I draw power from it, making me immortal!"

The temple absorbed battle energy, funneling it to Jester.

Dante grinned. "That energy's not infinite."

Jester laughed. "Still slow, Dante. History repeats, I said. Battles never end in this world!"

Heroes like Sparda, humans, Dante, and the shipgirls always rose against demons. Endless conflicts fueled the temple's energy, a near-infinite loop feeding Jester's immortality.

Jester's tail slammed toward Dante, who blocked with Rebellion's flat.

Tenryuu grunted, "Gah!"

Tentacles seized Akagi, Tenryuu, and Inazuma, smashing them against walls and floor before tossing them aside. They lay still, unconscious.

"Akagi!" Dante shouted.

The other shipgirls arrived, rushing through the passage.

Houshou gasped, "No…!"

"Akagi-san!" Kaga cried.

"Tenryuu-chan!" Tatsuta called.

"Inazuma!" Akatsuki and Ikazuchi shouted.

Kaga, Tatsuta, Akatsuki, and Ikazuchi ran to their fallen comrades. The others launched planes and fired to support Dante.

Jester sneered, "More of you? I'm bored, Dante. Let's end this."

He summoned countless magic circles, unleashing a storm of energy orbs. Dante generated an ice wall with Cerberus to shield the shipgirls, but cracks formed under the barrage.

"Admiral!" Kongou yelled.

Junyou panicked, "This is bad, bad, bad!"

The ice wall shattered. Kaga, Tatsuta, Akatsuki, and Ikazuchi shielded Akagi, Tenryuu, and Inazuma. Dante held firm, but the shipgirls collapsed.

"Akagi…san," Kaga whispered.

Kaga's voice roused Akagi. "…Kaga-san?"

Akagi saw Dante, bleeding from his head, still fighting. Jester's endless healing stalled the battle. Tentacles whipped Dante, then entangled and lifted him.

Jester cackled, "Fun times, Dante. I'll end you now!"

Akagi's heart sank. (No, not like this… the Admiral…!)

Her body refused to move. It was her dream's despair—Dante's death. She could only pray.

(Is fate unchangeable? Someone, save the Admiral!)

A man flashed in her mind.

"I shouldn't, but I'll lend you a little power," Zuikaku's voice echoed in her head.

"Zuikaku-san…?" Akagi whispered.

The shipgirls stirred awake.

"Over!" Jester roared.

A blade sliced through the tentacles binding Dante. He fell, landing on the ground.

"What!?" Jester bellowed.

Dante and Jester turned to the figure—a silver-haired man in blue, wielding a katana.

Akagi gasped, "Vergil-san…"

Vergil's voice was cold. "Pathetic, Dante."

Jester roared, "Impossible! You're a temple creation! Why defy me!?"

"Too bad," Vergil said. "I don't know how, but I'm free from the temple's control. You can't tame me."

The temple's fakes, linked to Jester, were his puppets. Yet Vergil was somehow unbound.

The shipgirls used spare Vital Stars to heal. Akagi, Tenryuu, and Inazuma recovered, joining Dante, who was restored with a Vital Star.

Dante smirked, "Helping out?"

Vergil's gaze was icy. "Don't misunderstand. I'll be the one to kill you. I won't let anyone else have that honor. And I have no reason to obey him."

The temple copied personalities perfectly. Vergil's nature made him defy Jester the moment he broke free.

Dante chuckled, "Showing up late and acting like the star, as always."

Vergil's eyes narrowed. "Will you let him have his way?"

"Hell no," Dante scoffed.

The shipgirls, knowing Dante and Vergil's deadly rivalry, watched nervously.

Jester laughed, "I'm immortal! Even with Vergil, you can't win!"

Vergil's voice was calm. "Haven't noticed, Arkham? You have one weakness."

"There's no such thing! And it's Jester!" Jester snapped.

"Fool," Vergil said.

Dante raised an eyebrow. "That true?"

"More than you," Vergil shot back.

"Fair enough," Dante grinned.

"I'll wipe you all out!" Jester roared.

"Round two!" Dante declared.

Dante readied Rebellion, Vergil gripped his sheathed katana, Yamato. Two demon swordsmen stood before Jester.

To Be Continued!