After taking the finished cure from the lab, Nero carried Annette in his arms as Kyrie led them back to the security office, opening up the doors for him. They had almost reached the door leading back to the elevator shaft when they were greeted by an unwanted old friend.

"How did you get here?!" Nero exclaimed at the green-coated giant. He and Kyrie retreated until they found a spot to set the unconscious scientist down. His arms freed, Nero felt them change. You'd better work this time, he ordered his left arm in his mind. Taking out neither pistol nor sword, he instead launched an uppercut into the giant's gut with his right fist. The bald man stumbled backwards as Nero leapt toward him, hitting the imposing man with a haymaker that would have sent any normal human flying.

Unfortunately, his opponent was far from normal, and as soon as Nero landed, one of the enemy's giant fists grabbed him by the neck, lifting him into the air. "Nero!" Kyrie yelled.

The Holy Knight brought one of his knees straight up, smashing into the giant's chin with a sharp crack. The other leg kicked into the green-coated brute's chest, pushing with enough force to break his grip and get Nero back down to the ground. He coughed, massaging his throat. You're a mean bastard, aren't you?, he thought angrily. Well… He drew his revolver, blasting at the bald stranger. His opponent walked forwards, ignoring the rapid gunfire. Nero ducked under a powerful left hook, dodged to the side to avoid a right hook, and then jumped backwards as the enemy slammed both fists into the ground. He put three more shots into the giant's head before it straightened up again. "Dammit…just get out of our way!" The lightning gun's only good for one more shot before it's in danger of being unfixable; I can't waste it on him!

The face of the man in the trench coat formed into a scowl, and he began advancing on Nero. The young man couldn't move any further backwards, or he'd put Kyrie and Annette in the crossfire. He needed to make the colossus retreat somehow…but how?

Well…there was one way…

He holstered Blue Rose, reaching both arms out past the giant, and this time, both had spectral arms extend outward. They each gripped a pipe on the far wall, and with a yell, Nero launched himself forward.

The bald man barely had time to blink before both Nero's feet impacted his head, the sheer velocity of the young man overcoming the green-coated behemoth's size and knocking it off its feet. The Holy Knight drew his revolver once more, firing point-blank at his opponent as his momentum carried him further and further forward. His shots traveled up the brute's body, ending with two in the face before he flew past the giant altogether, landing several feet away. The giant humanoid hit the floor with a loud crash, and Nero trained his gun on it just in case it got up again. For several seconds he waited, watching for any sign of movement. When none came, he stuffed the gun away, hurrying back to the others. "That probably won't keep him down for long, but we can deal with that later." He picked up the unconscious scientist, and they resumed their trek to the office.


Leon looked at her with both relief and surprise. "Ada, you made it! Sorry we took so long; we've been trying to find a way to cool off the elevator." He frowned. "Speaking of, how did you…?"

"The same as you, naturally. Sorry, but I couldn't wait forever; lives do hang in the balance, after all."

"Well, not that I'm ungrateful for the help, but I wish you would've waited for us."

"The most dangerous thing I've come across is another one of those zombie gorillas or whatever they are. And thanks to you, I already knew where the weak spot was, so it wasn't too difficult."

"Why didn't you wait at the security office?" Claire asked, staring at the woman. "It's an enclosed space; you could have defended yourself easily."

"What, and wake up the two resting inside? I'm more useful with the rest of you, since I have weapons and everything."

She shook her head. "Leon, try and call the others. Now that we've got one of the ingredients, it would help if we knew which ones they've got."

He nodded, pulling the radio from his belt. "This is Leon. Come in."


Nero drew the crackling radio from Annette's belt. "This is Nero; go ahead."

"We've managed to gather T-Blood for Lady's cure. How are you coming along?"

"We've got a cure ready for Sherry and the other two ingredients for Daylight."

"Really? That's the best news I've heard so far. So what's the catch?"

"We also managed to kill that mutant with the gas mask. Dropped him into a pool of molten metal."

There was a pause from the other end. "That doesn't…SOUND like a downside. Did he owe you money or something?"

"And we had a little run-in with Birkin; Annette's been injured pretty badly."

"Shit, I knew there had to be something. Is she stable?"

"So far. We're bringing her to the security room now."

"Roger that. We've managed to link up with Ada; we're headed to you to regroup."

Annette stirred in Nero's arms, clutching in the direction of the radio. "Mmm…spy…watch out for…spy…"

Nero shifted his grip so that she wouldn't fall to the floor with her sudden movement. "Hey, take it easy! Who's a spy?"

"Ada…Ada Wong is…spy…" She made one last attempt to grab the radio before she slipped back into unconsciousness.

Nero gave her a worried look before raising the radio back towards him. "You catch that?"

"No, I didn't. Why, was it important?"

"Might be. Just get over here quick, okay? Every second counts."

They weren't waiting long; they'd only just laid Annette down on the cot when the door opened and the others filed in. With all of them together, the modestly sized security office was suddenly quite cramped. "You made it," Kyrie said, smiling. "We're happy to see you again."

Claire nodded towards her before turning to Nero. "You said you got an antidote for Sherry?"

He nodded, handing her the so-called "DEVIL" vaccine. "But that's only part of our problem solved. We still need to mix up the cure for Lady and then get the hell outta here."

"Does anyone have a syringe?" she asked the group at large. "If I give it to her now…"

"That'll get some weight off our backs," Leon responded, handing her his only empty syringe while setting the blood-filled one aside. "Nero, didn't you have something you needed to tell us?"

"Yeah. Annette said to tell you something about Umbrella in private; mind if we step outside?"

Shrugging, Leon followed him out of the office. Once the door had closed, he said "Okay, now what is it? Did she only trust me because I'm a police officer or something?"

"…Well, okay, that was partly a lie to get you out here. What she actually said was that she thinks…Ada's a spy for someone. Maybe Umbrella, maybe someone else."

"What? That's impossible!" He stared defiantly at Nero's quirked eyebrow. "Why would she bother helping us if she were a spy for Umbrella? And if she was, why hasn't she tried to kill us or trap us?"

"The hell should I know?" Nero said irritably. "It's what she said; just passin' it on."

There was the loud, unmistakable sound of something powering down. "Error #582: Power setup invalid," a familiar female computer voice called out from the wall-mounted speakers. "Please reset power application at distribution terminal above main fuse."

"Seriously?" Leon muttered. "What, did the universe think things were getting too easy?" He looked at Nero. "We need to get the power back on if we ever want that Daylight made. You and Kyrie remember where the room was, so you two head there with all the stuff we need. The instant the power comes back on, get the machine working on mixing everything. The rest of us can go figure out how to pull the computer's head from its ass long enough to get the power running, and after that we'll work on doing what we can to get out of this damn town. Got all that?"

Nero gave him an approving look. "You'd have made a hell of an officer, you know that?"

Leon rolled his eyes, but smiled all the same. "Save the back-patting for when we're home free. Let's inform the others."

After a quick briefing, the rest of the assembled group was brought up to speed. They didn't share the part about Ada possibly being a spy, given that they couldn't prove it, but Claire seemed to know they weren't telling the full story.

Despite receiving the G-Virus cure, Sherry still hadn't woken up; Nero could only hope that was a sign of normal exhaustion, and that the cure hadn't failed somehow. Pushing the thought aside, the Holy Knight took the syringes full of T-Blood and absorbed them into the Devil Bringer; after taking one of the radios with them, he and Kyrie retraced their steps in the direction of the lab.

As they did, they walked through the glass corridor overlooking the Hell Gate. He looked at Kyrie, and she seemed to understand instantly. "Okay, but quickly." He sliced through the glass with Red Queen, jumping down into the cave with her in his arms. After setting her down, they stepped over the broken glass, walking up to the monolithic structure.

Both of them looked up at the towering Hell Gate, apprehension clenching inside them. It felt like so long ago that they'd seen one intact; the Gates in Fortuna having been destroyed during that "incident" with the former Order.

"How do you think it got here?" Kyrie asked the young man quietly.

"I dunno," he responded, frowning. "But we can't just leave it here. This place is full of monsters already." He searched the small pedestal near the gate that he'd used to seal one of them in the past. Upon seeing what was on it, however, his scowl deepened. "Now where did this come from…?"

Floating atop the pedestal was an object that looked like blue flames, if they were contained within a flat, jagged object that was invisible. Transfixed, he felt himself reaching out with his left hand toward the object; it shuddered slightly before drifting slowly to him. Once it touched his outstretched fingers, there was a bright flash of light, and then the flames were gone. Once more, words echoed in his head.

St. Elmo…joined…third of the twelve…first of the…Unseen One…be silent. All stands at…dark one…

You know, it'd be nice if something made a damn bit of sense for once, Nero thought to himself as he looked up at the Gate overhead. Without a Devil Arm or…whatever it was that he'd absorbed, the structure was essentially a giant slab of stone. Still…he couldn't just leave the inert rock here. What if there was another one of those blue floaty things hanging around in this place?

"Nero!" Kyrie was pointing to a figure shuffling towards them. He drew his sword, glaring at it as his arms shifted. It looked like a mix between a spider and a human. Umbrella's work, no doubt, but it must have been a failed experiment; it was an uneven mishmash of human and arachnid limbs, and every movement seemed painful to the creature. Its head was human from the jaw-line down, but its features above were that of a spider. And yet…there was something about this one… Of course; it's been hanging around the Gate, so it makes sense. It wasn't very strong, but there was still a faint sense of demonic energy projected from the creature, and its glowing yellow eyes were all-too-noticeable.

The spider hissed, jumping up over him. He lunged to the side, the hybrid crashing down where he'd been standing just a second before. He brought Red Queen up to block a strike from one of the creature's arms, but quickly had to contend with three more. Nero ducked, deflected and dodged as quickly as he could, but it was apparent that whatever pain the creature was in, its mobility wasn't suffering for it; if anything, the pain seemed to be making it more aggressive.

Time to swat you! Nero jumped back, placing his sword on his back as he drew his revolver, focusing power in his Devil Bringer. He fired two shots, which the monster dodged, but he didn't care about that. He could feel the power in his arm reach its limit, and he braced Blue Rose with both hands. "Bye-bye!" But then, to his shock, he felt all the energy that had built up in his right arm drain away into his left and disappear completely. "The hell?! I didn't mean it like-" He had to duck under several of the arms the creature was swiping at him. Talk about the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing! So using his charged-up shots was a no-go. And if his left arm was draining away power, it was a safe bet that his Devil Trigger was out, too. Not that he was going to chance it after last time… Should I risk trying a Devil Arm? He drew Red Queen again to deflect strikes once more. What if the arm just sucks it up and I never see it again?

His analysis was cut short as the mutated spider-creature jumped up again; this time, however, it attached itself to the side of the Hell Gate several feet overhead. Its abdomen pointed straight at him, and that was when Nero decided moving away would be an incredibly good idea.

And a good decision that was, as it turned out. What looked like a glowing red net erupted from the misshapen spinnerets, covering a wide area near where he'd been standing. He gazed at the material not far from him; it had the consistency of barbed wire, and it didn't seem to be going away in the near future. Looks like I'll have to cut through it or burn it. Lucky me; I can do both! The mutant…erm…launched?...another web at him, but this time he stood his ground, revving the sword's handle until just before the red mess hit him. Pulling the trigger at the same time as he swung, the enflamed blade cut through the net with ease, the fires spreading outward from the slash and consuming the rest of the net's substance. I might not have all my tricks ready, but I've still got enough to take you down!

The hybrid gurgled at him, dropping back down a few feet behind the Holy Knight. It raised its many arms up menacingly, and Nero tensed.

CLANG!

It was hard to tell, given that he wasn't familiar with spiders, but he thought that this one looked dazed. To be honest, with Kyrie having slammed a metal pipe into its skull, that wasn't too shocking. Still, Nero found himself caught by surprise. "Kyrie…"

She dropped the heavy pipe as shockwaves reverberated through it. "I couldn't just sit and watch! Do you think you can get it now?"

He grinned. "With pleasure!" He ran up to the monster, delivering a strong uppercut with his right arm. The force of the attack lifted the stunned creature up into the air. He grabbed one of the arachnoid limbs, twisting it with a snapping sound. Another net shot from the creature's abdomen, impacting the wall over Kyrie's head. Can't play around when it can do that! I wonder…maybe I can use that arm for something after all… He grasped the creature's head with his left hand, squeezing with all his strength. You wanna be a power leech, then suck it up!

It was hard to say whether or not his test worked; there was only a brief second before the hybrid's head was squashed like an old, rotten pumpkin. He threw the remainder of the creature to the side, and both it and the nets began to dissolve into shapeless puddles, with only a tiny bit of rapidly crystallizing blood left over. "When this is over," Nero announced, wiping his hands off on his coattails, "I am gonna have the longest shower."

Kyrie nodded. "I think that sounds good. But that would mean using a lot of hot water; it might be expensive."

He pretended to think seriously about the issue. "Yeah, you're right. We gotta be careful on how we spend money; might have to pair up to save on cost."

She gave him a sly smile. "Perhaps."

Nero grinned, itching the bridge of his nose absently. His gaze turned to the Hell Gate, at which point his face became serious again. "I'll need to use a Devil Arm to destroy this, but I'm not sure it'll work. If it doesn't, we'll have to get Dante in here."

Kyrie bit her lip, casting a worried glance at the Gate. "What about Lady?"

He was silent for a bit, before saying very quietly "…We can't leave this here, or this town might be the first of many." He took a deep breath. Okay…here we go. He focused.

The dual scythes of Karkinos appeared in his hands. Ah, so it's time! She sounded extremely eager.

You don't feel weird about smashing the Gate you came through?

Why should I? I'm yours now, and it's not like I had anyone waiting for me in Hell. Shall we?

He smiled. We shall. He took a run straight up the side of the Gate, slamming the scythes into a point near the top. Nero pulled down, slashing through the demonic stone and dropping downward. He spun as he fell, slashing to and fro to cut the material into smaller and smaller pieces. With a twist and a backflip, he landed in a crouched position, scythes held outward from his body. Piece by piece, the Hell Gate fell apart behind him, forming a large pile of rock and making a huge cloud of dust that filled the entire cavern. The Holy Knight gave a cough. "Well, that's done. Time to get that cure going."


The others, meanwhile, had made their way through the corridors back to the catwalk above the molten pools. Ada began typing at the console while the rest of them looked over her shoulder.

"Let's see…reroute this…and connect this…and I believe we have our fix." Ada looked up from the screen as the emergency lighting changed to regular lighting.

"Power restored. All systems now online."

CRSH!

All of them whirled around. Mr. X had returned once again.

"This guy never gives up!" Claire groaned.

"You almost gotta admire his determination…" Leon pondered.

"…If he weren't trying to kill us," Ada added. She raised her pistol as the towering figure approached, pulling the trigger three times.

Click. Click. Click.

She ejected the clip as fast as she could, but she'd only just finished reloading and then he was there and he was reaching out for her with his massive gloved hand-

And then she was falling backwards, wrapped in two sets of arms as a familiar-looking red figure launched itself into the huge enemy. They heard a loud, meaty THWACK as his fist connected with Mr. X's jaw. Landing on the other side of Mr. X, Dante beckoned to it. "C'mon, Cue Ball! I'm waiting." The towering figure turned, marching towards the Devil Hunter.

Ada looked up, seeing Claire and Leon standing above her, pistols drawn. "Hmph…that's another one I owe you," she said, maintaining a bemused tone even as her heart was pounding.

Leon grinned, but didn't look at her. "We're a team. We look out for each other. And besides, it never hurts to have someone owe you one."

She got to her feet, pointing her pistol as well. "Very true." None of them spoke, but the plan was clear; the instant Dante got clear, they'd pour every shot they could into his opponent.

Dante, however, was in no rush to get out of the way. He ducked under a right hook from Mr. X, then launched into an uppercut. His fist struck the human-like beast straight in the chin, but it barely let its head rock back before punching at the now-airborne Devil Hunter. He twisted in mid-air, the strike grazing his abdomen, as he kicked his opponent in the chest, flying backwards and landing neatly on the catwalk, tapping his foot as Mr. X advanced again. "That all you got, meathead?"

"Wrap it up, would you?" Claire asked in a dry tone. "I'm starting to root for this guy."

Dante shrugged, then charged at his opponent. Mr. X swung his left arm at the same time Dante swung his right. A deafening CRACK! rang out, and the two struggled to push each other's fist back. Mr. X punched at Dante with his other arm, but with another CRACK!, the same thing happened again. The two pressed on each other for a few moments, Dante giving a toothy grin. With a slight shove, he knocked Mr. X off balance; wasting no time, he yelled "Now! The head!"

The three opened fire on the green-coated brute, the bullets seeming to dizzy him as they impacted his skull. Dante's eyes lit up. "Are ya READY?!" As Claire and the others stopped to reload, he slashed into the giant over and over with Rebellion, a blur of red in motion. The massive blade thrust forward faster than the eye could follow. "And-" Dante yelled, retracting Rebellion. "You're-" He swept the blade from the ground upward, sending Mr. X into the air (much to Ada, Leon, and Claire's astonishment). Rebellion began to glow bright red, and as Mr. X fell back down again, Dante leapt into the air to meet him. "Outta here!" He swung his sword like a baseball player hitting a home run; the green-coated menace was knocked away, crashing into a wall with tremendous force. A moment later, he fell into the blackness below the catwalk; Dante landed, and Leon and Claire ran to join him as he looked over the side. They all saw their pursuer fall into a bright spot below.

Leon gave a sigh of relief. "I never thought I'd say this, but just this once, I'm glad Umbrella didn't give a damn about OSHA."

"Right into a pit of molten metal," Claire noted, smiling. "Good riddance."

Click-click.

"Excellent work. Now turn around; slowly."

Leon slowly turned around. Ada was pointing her gun at the three of them. He glanced behind him, but no, there wasn't anything about to pounce on them. "Ada? What's this about?"

Claire glared at the other woman. "So you are some sort of spy. I thought something seemed off about your story. Who do you work for? Umbrella?"

She shrugged. "Does it really matter?"

Dante grinned, folding his arms. "You know, I think this is the third time I've had a hot woman turn on me. Talk about rotten luck…"

"Was it bad luck, or your personality?" Claire shot out of the corner of her mouth.

"Nothing more than bad luck, I'm afraid," Ada answered with a small smile. "Now, to something that is important; you have a certain item that I need, Claire."

She stared down the traitor. "And what if I don't?"

"Please don't make this hard on yourself. Just hand the G-Virus sample over and no one has to get hurt." Grudgingly, she held the small purple vial out. "Thanks," Ada said, storing it away. "I'm sorry to have to end our partnership here, but my orders were clear: bring back a sample at any cost." Her smile faded, replaced by a look of remorse. "They also specified that any who discovered my true purpose were to be considered loose ends; ones that I would be obligated to take care of."

Dante's grin vanished, replaced by a hard look. "Don't do this, Ada. I don't want to have to hurt you."

"How chivalrous." She raised her pistol. "My apologies, but I can't have you as witnesses." Claire and Leon tensed, their hands inching closer to their guns. "Goodbye."

Three shots rang out.


CHAPTER END

Author's Note: For those who are unfamiliar with OSHA, they are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. They also happen to be the ones who would pitch an unholy fit if they ever came across Umbrella in the real world, and that's not even taking their secret labs into account!

Anyway, here's a chapter for you before we roll into December and the winter weather. Thanks for reading, and stay warm!