Capitolo Primo: Giovinezza (11)

The pale half-moon was up in the sky, shining brightly as the group concluded the last tasks of the ambush.

The area picked was one set right by the entrance of town, just enough to make it ‘logical’ for some fruit stands to be around. The food had been prepared with utmost caution, enough to not be taken as a hint for any suspicious activity aloof.

Whatever the creature was a werewolf or not, I still decided to take precautions to avoid any unexpected development as I knew that the monster had to still be strong and fast enough to avoid the previous capture attempts prepared by the local police force.

The only thing that I wasn’t truly certain about was succeeding at the first try. The beast could easily decide that tonight wasn’t just going to be a good day to visit, its limited mind certainly sensing trouble at striking so frequently with this much vehemence.

But while I really wanted to close my eyes even for just a moment, I knew that I couldn’t just afford this kind of luxury. I had to stay awake, to offer my utmost best to avoid the failure of this delicate mission.

One of the keys of success in many situations was patient, and stupidly whine about the lack of action in the first two hours of watch wouldn’t just do well for the morale of the rest of the group. Everyone was waiting patiently, silently. They knew that the creature was going to come soon, and they needed to be prepared to act as one to avoid any casualties in the process.

The long spears that were bladed with silver had been carefully hidden to avoid any reflection from those from alerting the monster in case it decided to come. Speedwagon had taken a seat beside mine, keeping a clear eyesight over his trusted companions which had been put to command the various sections of the little army.

I could see some tension in the fellow blond’s expression. His eyes showing some nervousness at the mere thought of the kind of monstrosity that was supposed to strike anytime now. The man had seen some crazy stuff happening in the capital, with Ogre Street being main location for most of the worst cases within the nation. But this was the first time he was supposed to face someone this… threatening.

A single bite from a werewolf would’ve been enough to turn a mere human in another monster. Thus death wasn’t truly the ugliest scenario available for those taking part in this skirmish.

Midnight had struck sometime ago now, and none of the usual daylight inhabitants had lingered as long as normally, presumably frightened by the prospect of any encounters with the creature that had reportedly attacked the area various times.

There was silence. But the unnerving quietness was doing the opposite than attract peacefulness to the hears and minds of those standing by their hideouts. I was tapping my fingers by my arm, orange eyes staring without distractions at what was supposedly to become a dangerous battlefield.

I stared hardly, and very tensely as I noticed something move quietly through the ‘empty’ square. The figure was short, with a tiny frame, but I could see the face and hair.

A little girl, her light-brown hair ran down a little below her shoulders. Her petite face was displaying some uneasiness, and from the rags she was using as clothes, it was a certainty within my mind that I was looking at some silly orphan that had taken notice of the free food and was making a break for the little stand filled with the fruits.

She looked to be not much older than seven.

“Dio-” Speedwagon had noticed the child too, glancing me with a panicked look, but I was already standing up from my chair.

“I will take care of this,” I assured calmly, making my way down the little roof which we had been using as I slowly wandered downstairs and toward where the girl was happily trying to get as many apples as she could get.

I stopped behind her, a sigh pending by my lips as I prepared to interact with her.

“It’s quite late, isn’t it?”

The sudden query interrupted the little orphan in her activity, the girl freezing up and almost dropping the apples. I waited for a couple of moment, enough for the child to recover from my unexpected presence.

Slowly turning around, her brown eyes stared up at my own orbs, a surprised glint held within her chocolate pools. More silence, I knew that talking now that she was this nervous would’ve only made her panic.

While on a normal instance that would’ve been alright, I had slowly come to understand that this wasn’t a mere orphan. Despite the fact her clothes were made by rags at best, her hair and skin looked hardly influenced by the grime and dust within the dirty streets of the rookeries.

Something about her was… off.

“The moon is up, people are sleeping,” I finally muttered once I was sure her tension had lessened to an acceptable level. “And the fruits of this stand are for free.”

She blinked, surprise swelling within her mind and face as she seemed slightly relieved by the confirmation. Yet, instead of merely nodding this off, she decided to frown.

“But why?”

Her quiet voice gained a curious look from me as I quietly reached around the stand and settled by the lone chair behind the table.

“My stand. My world,” I replied with a hint of amusement. “I suppose that… I just want to offer help more than sell simple things.”

Another blink, this time her surprise fully turned in curiosity. Curiosity which I would need to keep up this necessary conversation.

“But… isn’t that silly?”

I cracked a small smile. “I suppose it can be seen like that. But I’m just someone that wishes to… bring happiness to people.”

Awe appeared on her features, endearing the girl even more to take part in that unexpected discussion.

“That sounds like a nice thing,” She blurted out happily, her smile blossoming within her face.

“I’m glad to hear that,” I replied with a nod, then I blinked, faking a forgetful expression as I prepared to finally introduce myself. “Before I forget it… my name is Dio, Dio Brando.”

She nodded. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Brando.”

I almost flinched at the use of the last name. Perhaps I should really switch it instead of keeping it, especially with how distasteful it felt to even think about it. The name Brando was… just a synonym of horrible things happening all at once.

“Please, do call me Dio,” I returned with the same politeness, drawing a surprised look from the child. “I’m not that old. And I would prefer to be called by my first name.”

Another nod, then her eyes lit up at the fact that she had yet to introduce herself.

Looking quietly shyly, she huffed. “I’m- I’m Sarah.”

I offered a bigger smile. “Nice to meet you, Sarah.”

She giggled, her entire nervousness fading as she was left with even more curiosity at the ‘endearing figure’ I was presenting myself like.

“You know, it’s pretty late,” I muttered again. “And… I know it might sound a little bit strange to ask, but is there any reason why you’re still up, pretty girl?”

Her cheeks reddened a little at the compliment, and the embarrassed girl smiled even more at that, seemingly ignoring the ‘big question’ I had given her.

“I’m… I was just a little bit hungry,” She confessed without hesitation, making me frown at her genuine tone. “It’s been a while since I’ve tried apples.”

“Then do give it a bite,” I replied kindly, the girl quickly complying and taking a tiny bite out of the delicious-looking fruit. She munched on it a little, her smile growing happier as she enjoyed the food.

“It’s so good~.”

I almost chuckled at her cute reaction, but restrained myself as I needed to offer the least of noises as of now. I was dealing with a theory. A theory that could easily prove wrong and bring an innocent in the crossfire if my suspicions ends up failing to match up with the truth.

I needed to be careful, but I was making some good progress with this effort.

“I suppose it has to be tough. To be living in the streets,” I commented quietly, drawing a nod from the girl.

“It’s… not nice- but I got someone that cares for me a lot,” The child replied slowly, still enjoying her apple.

I blinked. “It’s good to never be alone, right?” I inquired back.

Another nod, this one with more eagerness. “My big brother is always there for me? He is my hero!”

I sighed at that response, feeling some perplexity rise up at the mention of this older sibling.

“Truly? I bet he has to be strong.”

“He’s super-strong!” Sarah agreed and reinforced. “He is fast, he’s nice and...”

She stopped, her sight dropping to the wooden table and with it her happy mood.

I gave her a concerned look. “Is something wrong with your big brother?”

The girl looked up, a surprisingly-serious tone on her face. An unexpected change from her previous giddy self.

“He’s… he has been feeling sick,” She admitted with some uneasiness. “He is… not at home when it’s nighttime and, and I think he got meaner too.”

…

Oh no.

I blinked, trying to hide the little realization from flashing through my face as I slowly came to understand the identity of the possible monster attacking this area at night. I felt ready to press for a little more, to inquire about any distinctive details of this sibling but-

My body tensed up as I felt something jump right above me through the roof of the building behind me. A lessened growl, it was just enough to get me moving as I pushed Hamon through my legs and quickened my pace.

Sliding through the table, I didn’t waste time nor words in lifting Sarah in my hold, dodging just in time the descending assault of the dark-furred fiend snarling at the table.

The girl eeped in surprise, her entire body shivering both at the suddenness of my action and the appearance of such a scary creature.

“Don’t worry, Sarah,” I guaranteed with a serious voice. “For I, Dio, shall protect you.”

Just as I pronounced these words, the four-legged creature sported its canine teeth before reeling a little bit to let out a challenging howl.

Now, that was the signal that was needed to trigger the arrival of support. In mere moments, numerous men flocked through the streets, all armed with their lances and prepared to rush to my aid.

Despite the quick presence of my little army, my worries about the werewolf were far from waning as the beast approached me. While it looked incredibly unnerved by so many people rushing towards us, the creature was staring at me intensely… and the reason for this attention was the child in my arms.

Gritting my teeth, I backed away to quickly dodge a sudden rush from the monster. Red eyes keeping track of my actions as the swift creature kept up with my pace… which was troublesome considering that I was supposed to fight it with my arms busied by Sarah.

I backed away one last time, deciding to finally focus my entire attention on the main threat. Once we had gained plenty of distance from the werewolf, I carefully dropped Sarah off my hold, the girl staring at me.

“I need you to run away from here, Sarah. Get to a safer place.”

I was curt with my order, enough to make her take a few steps away already as I turned my sight back on the approaching beast. It lunged forward, trying to pounce at me with its maws open and ready to take a bite at me.

But just as it seemed so close to reach out for my shoulder- I vanished in thin air.

Surprise painted its ugly mug, but soon that very surprise turned into fear as something bright rushed towards him.

The impact was decisive and I roared as I pushed him away with my standard Overdrive. The attack was one of the basic ones, which meant that it was quick to muster up and use in a stressful situation like this one. I recoiled my fist, reducing the hamon pumping into the punch as I stared at the recovering fiend.

It whined, a mix of pain and anger as it slowly got up and rushed at me. I could see a slight difference in it’s dark fur- the color having grown lighter than before. Now it looked like a dark shade of brown.

My hamon was fighting back the effects of the spell that had cursed him like this. I needed to act before my own men got too close and killed the possible innocent under that transformation.

The armed men were approaching fairly quickly, Speedwagon having left our little hideout to order around the formations to slowly encroach on our position. A little window of opportunity to avoid a tragedy.

It stood up, staring at me with incredible hatred, then it rushed with the same speed as before. My reaction time was at peak despite my sleep-deprivation, with the Ripple itself soothing the effects of my tiredness down to nothing.

I stood my ground firmly, cocking both of my fists for something quick and hasty. I could feel the Hamon surging in preparation for something that was surely going to bring the creature down and save the poor guy.

It lunged again, its maws trying to slowly open to prepare for another attempt at biting me up. I didn’t flinch, nor falter as I delivered another overdrive… this one being far stronger than the one before.

A barrage of punches, I felt close to achieve the same galore only a Close-Range Stand would achieve as I pummeled the wolf into stillness.

“Sunlight Yellow Overdrive!”

Its skin was tough, but I could see the hamon crackling against the curse, destroying it piece by piece.

The moment turned in a couple of seconds, then in two full minutes.

I stopped out of tiredness, staring at the creature slowly morphing back to a more humanoid form, the original owner of that body. A boy around my age, he was naked as no clothes had survived the previous transformation. He had a slightly tanned skin, and his hair reached down by his lower back.

He looked quite… wild with that ‘haircut’, yet my musing wasn’t just going to be allowed to continue as little Sarah decided to intervene now. With the young man now barely conscious, she rushed for a high-speed bear-hug, trying to talk with her brother while also pleading at the approaching men to stop.

She was afraid, enough to make me ease up my guard and gesture at my workers to stop. Some looked surprised, but Speedwagon’s loud voice seemed to draw them to comply as I slowly approached the two siblings.

I expected the barely-conscious guy to be incapable of going through a discussion, and I was so certain that the fight had been concluded like this, without much of a dangerous threat poised from the werewolf.

My training had made me so… over-prepared. Not only that, but I had so many contingencies planned for any sudden surprises that I could feel the need of be calm before such a singular scene.

Yet, while I made a few steps towards them, I noticed something strange with the older sibling, as his red eyes were open and staring intensely at his sister. It didn’t look neither a loving glance nor a worried one.

It was intense, it was raw… it was hunger.

I panicked, running as I saw his hand suddenly lifting up and showing… that it was still a dark-furred claw. The curse hadn’t been defeated completely.

It was a swift action. I saw the claws fall towards the unsuspecting child, with the brunette clinging protectively with her brother as I tried and failed to warn her of the danger.

I felt my… my existence questioned. I had just gloated, and I felt successful so easily and without any confirmation. I should’ve been careful- No, I can’t just surrender like this.

Up until now I had been able to achieve the impossible. I had learned the basics of the Spin, I was learning how to make use of Hamon, and I had started to make progress in the elimination of the threats that were Jack the Ripper and Wang Chan.

I was so close to achieve a complete victory, a bloodless one. I was so close and… I had to intervene quickly.

The spin wouldn’t taken too much time, and even the Zoom Punch was out of question with how long the distance was right now, just a little less than two meters. I wasn’t risking any chances of hitting Sarah with how faulty my aim with the Bubble Launcher was and… I was out of practical options about long-ranged means to stop the killing from happening.

Something. Something had to happen.

It had to happen. I wanted it to happen. I demanded it! I REFUSED TO ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN!

I will not tolerate a world that doesn’t bend to wishes! I will conquer it, turn it and make it mine!

In that furious mindset, I could feel something of a burden… snapping out from my back. I felt lighter, as something semi-transparent soared towards the inbound claw and… smacked it away, almost breaking the dark-haired boy’s arm.

It was surprising and I noticed that even the pseudo-werewolf had noticed something off about it.

His red eyes widened in shock, just a moment before his consciousness slipped away and he crumbled towards his sister. The hit had defeated the last ditch effort of the curse.

I stopped, shock filling my stare as my mind was frozen and forced to repeat in a loop what I had heard while the punch had made contact.

‘Wryyy~!’

There was no doubt about it. Yet my mind just failed to accept the evident scene just happening in front of me.

I, Dio, had somehow tapped into my own Stand.

----------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d------------d-d-d-d----------d-d-d-d-----------

My hasty return to the Joestar Manor ended the interesting night that saw so many new variables enter the large game of hearts and minds that I was a player to.

Speedwagon had voiced his reluctance in bringing both Sarah and her brother back to the main headquarters, but he had complied as I had offered him some guarantees over the boy. He knew that the little brunette was harmless, and that the only real issue was the chance of the young man turning in a furred machine of doom right on their ‘home’.

With this little situation wrapped up in the safest way possible, and with the other men being sworn up to not mention anything about the situation that had happened that very night, I found myself dealing with the fact that I had pull a successful all-nighter and… I wasn’t feeling any of that.

I knew that the Hamon was known to heal and help with any soreness, but to see it act to heal my state of sleep-deprivation? Now I had a reason to consider avoiding coffee altogether. The fact that it was also the main tool that allowed me to make my way back to the house without risking the chance of getting caught.

To be fair, I had planned hours earlier the whole ‘Spider-man’ skit to get back in my room by the wall and through the still-open window, but this was the first time I climbed up a solid surface that wasn’t a simple tree.

Truly a fun experience, one that was mostly ruined by some thoughts over the impending death below me if I failed to keep up the proper Hamon input with my hands and feet. Once I was back inside the building, I proceeded to close the window and lie down on the bed.

I had so much to ponder about. So much to think over… why did I get an infuriating ‘teaser’ for my Stand?!

I was slightly irked by the fact that I, Dio, had managed to pull just a fraction of my Stand out and I can’t yet bring it up again. It had been the rush of the moment, the adrenaline and the willpower mustered in that specific deadly situation.

It had been so… majestic, but also so teasing. It had been like receiving a caress and then being slapped without an apparent reason.

Yet the bad part didn’t come any closer to the kind of confusion I had over the ‘bizarre bit’ of that development. I was still failing to make theories over why my Stand hadn’t gone with ‘Muda’, but with ‘Wryyy’.

It didn’t make any sense. I knew within myself that ｢The World｣ was still going to be mine. There was no reason to doubt it as I felt it. And yet the battlecry didn’t match with the one that the bulky humanoid would usually make during the use of its infamous punch barrage.

W-Was it because I preferred Wryyying to Mudaing? Is there something wrong with me? Maybe I should step up my Dio game?

The torturous trail of thoughts persisted for two whole hours… enough to get me to stand up to the bed and go to enjoy some proper breakfast.

I was still having some trouble digesting the fact that I had skipped my usual few hours of rest and I wasn’t feeling any of that, but with my mind still driven crazy by the fact that I had a glimpse over my future Stand… I really wasn’t paying attention to the miraculous effects of the Ripple.

At least, not right now.

I greeted a couple of servants along the way as I reached for the dining room.

George was distracted by some newspaper, while Jonathan smiled and greeted me with a nod, which I returned without hesitation.

I took my usual seat, humming quietly as I scanned carefully what had been prepared for breakfast. Waffles would surely do well with my depressed state of mind.

Just as I started to munch at my first prey, my attention slowly turned at the newspaper that had distracted the older Joestar from greeting me. A couple of the titles there gaining my interest almost instantly.

‘A breath of air? The monster misses his date’

Seems like the media had noticed that the yesterday had been a ‘quiet night’. While I had some doubts about everyone working under me keeping that a secret, it would seem that Speedwagon’s persuasion and capacity to bribe the more reluctant members had worked wonders.

I almost nodded at this development, feeling glad that there wasn’t any unexpected backlash coming from that fight’s aftermath. Yet my eyes didn’t fail to notice the umpteenth title dedicated to the newest victim of ‘Jack the Ripper’.

Once again the unfortunate guy that had stepped right into Jack’s path had been given a blond-like color to his hair and… there were some different engraved words on his torso.

Shine Brighter.

Truly an unnerving sight. I could feel my blood boil at this obsession the man had over me. I should intensify my efforts to try and hunt down the bastard now that he had left anonymity again to resume with his spree.

Maybe that would be the perfect next step now that I had most of the stability in my turf assured, with only a couple of minor issues left to deal with.

Returning my attention to my share of the breakfast, I finally saw George folding down the paper and take notice of my presence. He seemed genuinely surprised when he saw me already seated and eating.

“Oh Dio, I hadn’t- I forgot to greet you-”

“It’s alright, Lord Joestar,” I interrupted politely, showing a small understanding smile. “I suppose there has been quite the situation with the recent events.”

The lone father nodded, easing at my reassuring words. “These last few days had been quite difficult to handle. But I think I got mostly everything under control.”

He leaned a little on his chair, turning his sight to his waiting waffle. Soon, he took a moment to enjoy one of the three pieces on his plate.

“Dad,” Jonathan muttered with some giddiness, almost instantly gaining my interest as the man sighed and smiled at his son’s enthusiasm.

“I almost forgot this too,” The man mused with a tired sigh. “But JoJo just received a letter confirming his apprenticeship with a well-known teacher for History. He has expressed some wishes to become an archaeologist and I’m sure that knowledge will come handy in administering the family business.”

I nodded, smiling proudly at the happy-looking young man before returning my attention back to George, as I realized that he wasn’t done yet.

“And since my son has been finally accepted by a teacher, I decided that it was best to try a different approach with you,” The nobleman continued with a serious tone. “Which is… I want you to pick the professor you think would best benefit you.”

…

He was joking- there was no way that he was actually offering me, a fourteen years old teen, the chance of picking his ‘favorite teacher’ out of the roster of people available in this era.

There were plenty of people that I wanted to know, but the list of those that I actually wished to become an apprentice to was incredibly shorter than the previous one.

Good people, bad people, influential people… crazy people. There were so many of those and just a couple actually worth of considering for as proper mentors for me to ask about.

It was seriously going to be one of the toughest choices possible considering it had to do with my main cover. Any teacher that was distant from London was surely going to urge me to either come and visit out of the region, or even adopt some unpleasant times to give lessons for the sake of keeping up with other responsibilities.

I frowned at this little leeway I was offered. “Can I have some time to… ponder over this decision? I’m currently unprepared to afford a name.”

“You may take some weeks to decide. But I wish to remind you that you will need to continue with your education,” George replied kindly, just a hint of stern joining his complex. “Both you and Jonathan have displayed a prowess with your studies that I don’t wish to see wasted. Jojo has already settled with this specific teacher, and now it’s your turn to do the same.”

I nodded. “I shall consider this situation with the utmost importance and seriousness, Lord Joestar.”

He seemed pleased with the answer and soon breakfast resumed with a pleasant silence which I was quick to paint with my thoughts.

This new situation was kind of annoying. While I was glad to have been offered the chance of actually choosing the one that I will ask to become my mentor, I sure hadn’t made any plans about pursuing a serious education-related career with the kind of plans and schedules I had in mind for the distant future.

I had my mind set in a precise path of success, one that had a general line that I wasn’t going to stray from for any silly reasons. It was going to be a tough road, but one with good rewards and a promise of world-wide dominance.

With breakfast coming to an end, I expected for the rest of the day to be a ‘simple one’ to my usual weekly schedule. I had some plans, but nothing too big considering the recent issue that I had been forced to deal with.

Now I had two more possible recruits to confirm. People that would require attention, charisma, and, most of it all, actions to prove my good intentions.

It wasn’t going to be an easy task, but I certainly wasn’t going to stray away from it now that I had the capacity to make some huge steps around. That and… maybe I could use the ‘teacher card’ to start thinking about the chances of going as far as starting to influence London’s politics with some careful manipulation.

I wanted to grin, to cackle, to Wryyy- but then I was reminded of something that I had been ignoring for days now and that required some of my attention to be finished.

The translation was mostly over, I was close to understand the true origins of the protagonist and the ‘antagonist’ of the Prophecy of the Sagittarius. I would know about his identity and… confirm some strong suspicions that I had been harboring since I stopped translating at the last ten pages.

I wondered if it would end up being ‘him’, or if this was just a silly theory of mine that lacked any logical basis.

But then this is Jojo, and things were meant to be logically bizarre from time to time.

So, while I, Dio, hummed quietly as I made my way back to my own room, I failed to notice that a certain Stone Mask was no longer fixed by the wall were George had left it.