KanColle X Devil May Cry: Devil Trigger Protocol

Devil May Cry Naval Base

A young girl tiptoed through the dark corridor, her steps slow and cautious.

"Ugh… so scary…"

It was Akatsuki. Needing the bathroom in the dead of night, she had woken up but was terrified of the darkness. She considered asking her younger sister to come along, but her pride as the older sibling pushed her to go alone.

Glancing out a window, Akatsuki froze. Someone stood on the naval base grounds.

"Huh…? Who's that? A ghost?"

It might be someone from the base. Squinting to see, she realized it was a nude woman. Her skin was pale as if bloodless, her hair and eyes a vivid red. Their gazes locked.

"Eek…!?"

The nude woman smiled.

"Kyaaaaaaa!"

Akatsuki screamed, fleeing somewhere other than the bathroom.

Morning came, and Dante stirred awake.

"Lately, I've been living way too orderly…"

As he rose from bed, something felt off. Lifting the blanket, he found Akatsuki sleeping there.

"…It's kinda damp."

Admiral's Office

Dante lounged at his desk, feet propped up, flipping through a magazine with a scowl.

"Admiral, don't be too hard on her," Houshou urged, trying to soothe him.

"Why'd she sneak into my bed?"

"I needed the bathroom at night… and saw a ghost…" Akatsuki mumbled.

Dante had noticed the dampness immediately Akatsuki's accident. Unsure what to do, he'd quietly asked Houshou for help.

"Ghosts, huh? Demons exist, so a ghost or two isn't far-fetched," Dante said.

"I'm sorry… sniff… sob…" Overwhelmed by guilt and embarrassment, Akatsuki burst into tears and bolted from the office.

"Akatsuki!" Houshou called. "She's still young. Bedwetting happens. She came to you because she trusts you. Be kind."

Dante stayed silent.

The news droned on about men found dead under mysterious circumstances, cause unknown, spreading fear.

Noon, Cafeteria

"Where's Akatsuki?" Kaga asked.

"Haven't seen her since breakfast," Akagi replied.

"What's up, little ones?" Tenryuu chimed in, noticing Ika and Hikari's unease.

"We're not little!" Hikari snapped.

"Akatsuki's missing," Ika added.

"Missing?" Tenryuu, Tatsuta, and Kita exchanged glances.

"She'll show up when she's hungry," Kita suggested.

Akatsuki had run out of the naval base in a panic, sprinting until she reached the city. Only then did she realize she was lost. She'd never been to the city before.

"…Where am I?"

Looking around, she couldn't find the way back. Asking a stranger for directions felt impossible. She was trapped.

Dante was napping in his office chair when Tenryuu burst in.

"Know where Akatsuki is?"

"Saw her this morning. Not since."

"She didn't show for training."

"Probably slacking with Hatsuyuki."

"You're acting weird today, Admiral. Something happen with her?"

Dante clammed up, and Tenryuu left.

By night, the naval base was in chaos. Akatsuki was nowhere to be found. Houshou had a hunch after Dante's scolding, no one had seen her. Could she have run away?

The others searched frantically.

"Akatsuki! Where are you?" Tenryuu shouted.

"Akatsuki-chan?" Tatsuta called.

"Over here?" Kisaragi yelled.

"Where is she!?" Hikari cried.

"Come out, or ghosts'll get ya!" Kita teased.

"Anything, Hatsuyuki?" Akagi asked.

"…Nothing. I'm exhausted," Hatsuyuki sighed.

Tenryuu, Tatsuta, Ika, Hikari, Kita, Kisaragi, and Hatsuyuki scoured outside. Akagi, Kaga, Akashi, and Ooyodo searched inside.

In the cafeteria, Houshou confided in Mamiya.

"She might've run away after the Admiral scolded her this morning…"

"But she's never left the base!" Mamiya gasped.

"She's probably lost out there…"

Dante entered.

"What's going on?"

"Akatsuki's missing. Maybe she ran away," Houshou said.

"Run away?"

The TV blared news of more male corpses, all in the same district. Dante's eyes narrowed, and he bolted out.

"Admiral!?" Houshou and Mamiya cried.

Dante sped toward the city on his motorcycle, a bad feeling gnawing at him. His instincts were never wrong. The deaths were all in one area he aimed there, ignoring speed limits.

Meanwhile, Akatsuki trudged on, feet aching. Dusk had fallen, and loneliness threatened to break her. Still, she walked.

She stumbled into an office district and froze. In a dark alley, a man and woman were locked in a passionate kiss.

"…!" Her cheeks burned.

But something was wrong. The man collapsed. Akatsuki stared at the woman—and froze. It was the nude demon from last night, her red eyes locking onto Akatsuki's.

"Eek…!?"

"Well, well, a familiar face. Lost, little one? Come here," the demon purred.

"A ghost!?"

"How rude."

The demon approached, but Akatsuki was paralyzed with fear.

Dante reached the city, searching for Akatsuki. Spotting a bat glowing with faint purple light, he followed it. A swarm of bats flew toward a skyscraper. Arriving, he found the entrance locked. No problem he scaled the building's exterior with superhuman agility, reaching the roof.

There stood Nevan, the succubus from Temen-ni-gru.

"Finally showed up, handsome," she cooed.

"Everyone I know causes trouble the second they're out of my sight," Dante growled.

"I was told you'd come if I waited here."

"Not exactly waiting quietly, huh?"

"Just a little taste."

"Taste? You've killed how many people?"

"I hadn't eaten since Temen-ni-gru. I was starving."

"Starving's no excuse."

"Sparda looked at me the same way. Come on, let's play."

Nevan unleashed electrified bats. Dante shot them down with his dual pistols, closing in. He swung Cerberus, his triple nunchaku, but the bats blocked his strikes. Undeterred, he stripped away the bats forming her cloak. Sensing danger, Nevan dissolved into a swarm and reappeared elsewhere, electrifying the ground. Dante jumped to avoid the shock, but a curtain of lightning closed in. He dodged, only to face a blast of electricity from her mouth. He barely evaded.

"Still got some nasty tricks," Dante said.

"Electrifying, right?"

"Only good women make me tingle."

"Then I'll make you feel it!"

Nevan sent more bats. Dante countered with Artemis, firing magical arrows to cancel them out. Nevan summoned black blades from the ground. Dante dodged, firing his pistols, then struck with Cerberus as she flinched. Her bat-cloak weakened, and damage piled up. She dissolved into bats again, escaping.

When she reappeared, she held Akatsuki.

"Heh…" Nevan smirked.

"Admiral!" Akatsuki cried.

Dante cursed. With Akatsuki in danger, he couldn't attack. Nevan sent bats his way. Dante activated Cerberus's Ice Age, encasing himself in a protective ice sphere. The bats shattered against it, but another lightning curtain hit, knocking him back. Electrocuted, he struggled to move.

"Admiral!" Akatsuki sobbed.

She'd caused him trouble all day wetting his bed, running away, and now hindering his fight. As the eldest sister, she should be stronger. The demon holding her was terrifying, but Akatsuki decided to change. Summoning courage, she bit Nevan's hand. Startled, Nevan released her.

"A proper lady doesn't lose to ghosts!" Akatsuki declared.

She deployed her rigging, firing her main cannon at Nevan. The blast hit, but too close Akatsuki was thrown off the skyscraper by the explosion.

"Kyaa!" she screamed.

Dante dove after her, grabbing her midair and pulling her close as they plummeted. Nevan's bats swarmed behind, forming a demonic weapon. Glancing back, Dante triggered Devil Trigger, transforming into a winged demon. He glided to the ground, setting Akatsuki down gently before reverting.

Akatsuki, eyes shut from fear, felt herself being held. Opening them, she saw Dante.

"…Admiral."

"You okay? Nice work."

"I'm sorry, Admiral!"

Nevan returned to her true form. Akatsuki hid behind Dante.

"What's your game?" Dante demanded.

"I didn't mean to let her die. You'd kill me if I did," Nevan said.

"Who told you to wait here?"

"That pathetic jester. Said you'd show if I stayed. But you took forever, and I got lonely surrounded by those girls. So, fighting you was my little revenge." She winked, touching his cheek.

"Why were you with Akatsuki?"

"Met her during a meal. Kept her for fun 'til you showed."

Nevan, jealous, had kidnapped Akatsuki to provoke Dante. As a succubus, she drained men's life force. Akatsuki, being female, was safe but terrified.

"As an apology, a gift." Nevan handed him Beowulf, a demonic weapon.

"Why do you have this?"

"That fool tossed it, saying it was useless. I grabbed it. You're welcome."

"What's his goal?"

"Not sure, but he wants powerful demons like us to fight."

More demons appeared.

"Akatsuki, hide," Dante ordered.

"O-Okay…"

"Let's dance," Dante told Nevan.

"Love to."

Nevan transformed into her weapon form, and Dante wielded her.

"Time to rock!"

He unleashed a storm of bats and lightning.

Days later, Akatsuki walked the base's corridor at night, holding Dante's hand.

"A proper lady should handle the bathroom alone," Dante yawned.

"Ugh…" Akatsuki still feared the dark.

Someone approached pale skin, red hair, red eyes. Nevan.

"Eek…"

Nevan grinned wickedly.

"Kyaaaaaaa!" Akatsuki screamed.

"No way! Hold it in, Akatsuki! And you, don't show up now!" Dante snapped.

"Naughty girl, wetting yourself. Time for punishment," Nevan teased.

Nevan toyed with Akatsuki, leaving Dante to clean up the mess.

"Man, this is lame…"