We've reached chapter 50. I guess that's who I am now; the neverending fan fic writer. 50 chapters and counting... Yikes. Thanks for sticking with me and Deadhouse. I hope you continue to enjoy this story. And how about that LUZOLU reunion in canon?! Ahhhh, so perfect!

Getting through the door proved to be the easiest part.

Zoro went crashing through drywall as the door splintered and gave way. Zoro fell to the ground, debris choking the air from his lungs. He rolled over, tossing pieces of the wall off of his body. He waved his hand in front of his face, clearing the air and his eyes and lungs of dust. He looked up at Sanji and smiled tightly, "Door's open."

Sanji smiled weakly and nodded. He stepped out of the hallway carefully, as if the dust that covered him from head to toe wasn't already there. He looked around the room slowly, the only light pouring out of the narrow hallway. There was something in the cage and it watched them with intense eyes.

Zoro eventually climbed back to his feet. He moved to approach the cage but Sanji held him back. Sanji shook his head, "Not this one."

"We already went over this," Zoro argued. "If Luffy were here I know what he'd say… He'd want all of them freed."

"Not this one," Sanji repeated, placing his hand on Zoro's chest. "Not this one."

"Why? What do you know about this one?" Zoro questioned.

"Come on," Sanji instructed, ignoring Zoro's probing questions, "Let's go outside. I don't feel like being trapped in another hallway." Sanji began to walk away. "I'll need you to break down another door."

Zoro wasn't listening. Instead he was standing in front of the cage, unsure of when he'd even moved. He didn't reach out his hand and touch the bars. He didn't see Luffy's sorrowful eyes when he gazed upon the creature. He wasn't overcome with the guilt he'd felt in the first warehouse. No, this feeling, this drive to see the creature was something else entirely. He could feel the hate coiling within the enclosure. The creature's eyes were almost human, too human.

The creature opened its mouth and a deep voice rumbled from its feathered body. The words were muffled by the vibrations from its throat. The detail was lost; Zoro couldn't make out a single word. But the meaning was understood completely. That creature hated him. And given the chance it would use its razor-like talons to slice him from chin to navel.

"Zoro," Sanji called out. "Come on."

"This one too," Zoro said, almost reluctantly.

"You can't be serious…"

"All of them," Zoro barked, moving away from the cage. "We said we would free all of them."

"If we let that thing out… Wait! It doesn't even matter! Security is on its way! We're about to be captured. Does any of this ring a bell?!"

"This thing is fucking pissed," Zoro said, gesturing to the creature.

"I noticed. There's no way in hell I'm letting it out just for it to rip out my eyes…"

"How much is that thing worth, Sanji?" Zoro asked, hitching his thumb.

"Millions if not billions of dollars," Sanji answered. "It's one of a kind developed for military intelligence…"

"Okay, great." Zoro nodded, "Now are you gonna let a billion dollars just walk away?"

Sanji scratched at his hands uncomfortably, "No."

"No." Zoro said with finality. "You're gonna prioritize its capture."

"You're assuming it doesn't kill us and we have time to escape."

Zoro turned back toward the creature, speaking loudly, "Yeah, well, I never fucking tested on it. I've never hurt it. Not once. I assume it will spend its time going after the mother fuckers it really hates."

Sanji sighed and then laughed deliriously. He shook his head, his hand covering his face, "Give me a minute, the key card is invalid."

Zoro nodded and looked back at the creature. There was no relief in its eyes, no gratefulness. It understood the exchange but felt nothing toward its would-be saviors. Zoro crossed his arms over his chest and returned the icy stare, "Don't get me wrong. You're a diversion." The creature opened its mouth again to speak. The noise was eerie and unnatural and made the hairs on the back of Zoro's neck rise. Zoro ignored the feeling and smiled, "Didn't catch that."

"Are you fucking egging him on?!" Sanji shouted, smacking his hand against the controls. "Don't be stupid…"

"No," Zoro said simply, pacing beside the cage, "It's just right now us and this guy have the same enemy. It's convenient."

"Alright, I think I got it," Sanji murmured before turning toward Zoro, "You get the door."

"You can't figure out a way to get the door open while you're at it?" Zoro demanded, rubbing his shoulder.

Sanji made a face, throwing his hands up irritably, "Mr. Roronoa, you are going to be the fucking death of me…"

There was an alarming beeping sound and the cage door popped open. The warehouse grew cold. The creature stepped forward, fluttering its wings as if to test them out. It took another step forward and then another, its clawed feet dragging across the cement.

"Door."

Sanji groaned, "I'm a chemical engineer not a fucking wizard."

"Door."

"You repeating yourself isn't helping…" Sanji chimed. And then the green light flashed above the door and it buzzed open. Sanji spun around in shock before shouting, "That wasn't me! Zoro! Down!"

A canister rolled across the floor, spewing gas. Sanji dropped to the ground, lifting his shirt over his face. He leaned his back against the wall and closed his eyes. This was a stupid plan. A pointless plan. How had he ever thought it could work? I'm losing it, Sanji realized, tucking his head against his knees, I'm running out of time.

For several minutes everything was completely still until the canister had finally emptied. There was a moment of silence before soldiers started pouring inside the warehouse. They wore masks and looked like aliens in their goggles. Their boots stomped noisily against the floor as they filed inside, blinded by the slowly dissipating gas.

"Mr. Vinsmoke!"

There was a rustling sound in the foggy darkness.

"Mr. Vinsmoke please announce yourself! No harm will come to you!"

Something fell, clattering to the concrete. An object rolled forward, casting a sliver of light through the misty air. Sanji leaned forward and grabbed the rolling flashlight. It was warm around the handle, a tiny speck of blood on the glass. He clicked it off and shoved it in the waist of his pants.

"Mr. Vinsmoke?"

There was a loud grunt and then another. Sanji stood and walked quietly, his hand against the wall. He finally reached the destroyed hallway and he took several steps to the left until he eventually touched the cage.

"Mr. Vinsmoke?"

"Sanji," Zoro hissed through a mask, covering Sanji's mouth with his hand. "It's me."

Sanji relaxed against Zoro's body, nodding silently. Zoro dropped his hand and Sanji turned around, "I'm sorry, I'm not thinking straight. I don't know what I'm doing or…"

"Shut up," Zoro warned, placing his finger against his mask in gesture. "Let's go."

"Where? They know exactly where we are and-"

Zoro grabbed Sanji's hand and led him away from the cage. They crept through the gas-filled room until they reached another door; the door leading to another narrow hallway.

"It's locked."

Zoro shook his head and turned the knob. His voice was muffled through the mask, "No, it isn't."

"We'll just be trapped in this hallway and I-" Sanji panicked.

Zoro shoved Sanji unceremoniously through the door. And then Zoro pushed Sanji all the way down the miniscule hall until they reached the next door. Sanji tried the knob and to his surprise the door opened. "What the hell?!"

Zoro removed the mask as they stepped into the next room. He wiped the sweat off his face with a shaking hand. He leaned against the wall for a moment before speaking, "The doors are all unlocked."

"Why? How?"

Zoro licked his lips, "Sabotage."

"What do you mean sabotage?"

"I mean we aren't the only people here trying to fuck up the Germa," Zoro explained, eyes narrowed.

"Where'd you get that mask?" Sanji asked in realization.

"Never mind that," Zoro whispered.

"Wait. No. How do you know other people are here? Where'd you get the mask? How'd you know the doors were open?"

"He told me. And as for the mask, I took one off the first body I found," Zoro explained.

"He? Who's he?" Sanji's face twitched with expressions as he finally understood. "That thing? That thing told you?"

Zoro nodded, "Yeah."

"You spoke to it?"

Zoro nodded again, "He said he could hear the radio chatter. He knew exactly what was going on."

"How the hell could you understand him?!"

Zoro licked his lips, his brow furrowed, "He transformed, Sanji. He was human."

Sanji took a step back, "No."

"This is the time to act," Zoro pressed on. "We aren't the only people here. We need to move fast while we still have a diversion."

"The Germa has the most advanced technology in the western world, how the hell did someone hack into it?" Sanji gasped, shaking his head in disbelief. "Unlocking the doors? What about cages? What is going on?"

"Sanji, calm down," Zoro pleaded, grabbing Sanji's shoulders. "Calm down."

"I can't calm down," Sanji refused. "I can't. I have to save Chopper and find Luffy and-"

"Sanji…" Zoro pleaded again, grabbing Sanji's hands. "Don't leave me."

Sanji was struck by Zoro's words. He looked up into Zoro's dark eyes and murmured softly, "Was I going somewhere?"

Zoro nodded, closing his eyes, "You look like shit, man."

"Still better looking than you," Sanji returned, squeezing Zoro's hands before letting go.

"That's true," Zoro said before laughing loudly.

"Alright, come on. Let's keep moving."

"I was waitin' on you, princess…"

"Oh, you know what? Fu-" Sanji's words died in his throat as something large and heavy connected with the side of his head. Sanji was down instantly, his body pounding violently against the concrete.

Zoro punched the first thing he could reach; the soldier's rifle. He punched again and connected with the man's head. He knocked the soldier over and dropped down on top of him. He punched mercilessly, smashing his helmet against the concrete until it cracked. "You should've hit me first," Zoro growled. He slipped his hands down, squeezing tightly around the man's throat. He intended to release when he felt a sickening snap in the man's neck.

Zoro climbed off the man and looked down at his lifeless form. For a moment it felt surreal. And then it felt necessary. Zoro turned his attention to Sanji. He kneeled beside his friend and touched the visible side of his face, "Hey, you awake?"

"Unfortunately."

"Need a hand?"

Sanji made a noise and pushed himself up on his hands and knees. He looked up at Zoro with glittering blue eyes. Half of his face was obscured with blood and the tip of his nose was skinned. Sanji smiled, "I was just resting my eyes."

Zoro grabbed Sanji by the elbow and lifted the slighter man to his feet. He slapped Sanji on the back encouragingly and stepped over the dead soldier. They walked in silence over to the controls where Sanji opened the cage. The creature hesitated for only a moment before crawling out of its enclosure.

"Didn't want to make friends with that one?" Sanji teased.

Zoro shrugged, "Don't have time to chat with all of them."

"Now you care?"

Zoro tugged playfully on Sanji's pale blonde hair. He smiled softly before answering, "I thought I was going to pass out before I got the mask. I felt like shit." Zoro looked away. "When I found you and we walked out of there…" Zoro trailed off. He started walking toward the far door, his broad back a powerful visage.

"What?" Sanji wondered, following after Zoro quickly.

Zoro shrugged before stepping into the next narrow hall. He squeezed through wordlessly, pausing just before the exit into the adjacent room. He rested his hand on the knob and sighed heavily. "You didn't need a mask, Sanji."

Sanji didn't know how to take those words. He stood in the hallway behind Zoro, too stunned to say anything. He licked his lips and looked down at his feet. And finally all he could come up with in reply was, "And what does that mean?"

"I don't know," Zoro admitted. And then he stepped through the door.

They cleared the next five warehouses without incident. It was an uneasy feeling to encounter no resistance. Finally Sanji spoke it out loud, "Something's wrong. We should be swarmed with Germa employees. We should've been captured already. This doesn't make sense."

"You seem disappointed…" Zoro laughed.

Sanji rolled his neck and shoulders back until they popped. "You know what I mean."

Zoro nodded seriously, "Yeah I do."

"What do you think is going on?"

"Something worse than the two of us releasing test subjects."

"And what could be worse than that?"

Zoro thought it over, "Don't know. I can only hope it's someone on our side."

"Who's on our side? What side are we?" Sanji wondered aloud. "I don't even know."

"We're on Luffy's side."

Sanji rolled his eyes, "Yeah, well, I don't think we'd be lucky enough that…" Sanji and Zoro's eyes met. "You don't think?"

"What could be more important than two Keepers opening cages?" Zoro barked.

"There's no way, right?" Sanji rationalized. "No one was able to find his evacuation vehicle. They are positive it hadn't left the city before it was bombed…" Sanji continued, "And Luffy certainly couldn't hack the computer system."

"You said he was coming."

"Yeah, but," Sanji shook his head. "Yeah, I did. But I…" Sanji gradually stopped walking. "I didn't think he'd… I don't think he could find us so quickly. He doesn't know how to navigate the real world and he's all alone and…"

"We don't know that he's alone."

"Zoro, you're overexcited." Sanji chastised. "It's probably the Revolutionary Army. They're probably here to finish all of us off. They could hack the computer system. They could keep the soldiers busy elsewhere. And if it's them… They're going to kill us."

"Like hell they are!"

"Zoro," Sanji interrupted. "Now's the time. Let me say what I need to say…"

"What, Sanji?" Zoro sighed impatiently.

"They knew exactly who they were," Sanji began. "The whole time Germa Six Six and the D Foundation knew their names and they kept it from them. The serum was a failure. It was all Law. His blood is the T serum."

"You were saying that earlier, but why's that important?" Zoro asked.

"Vergo told us when we worked in Deadhouse, but it didn't seem to matter back then. But now it does." Sanji continued. "Ace and Marco said that Luffy needs T serum injections or he'll die. That's why they were helping capture him."

"But we don't know if that's true or not."

"Law believes it. So we can assume it's been proven to him," Sanji pointed out.

"Okay, and so what?"

"What are these then?" Sanji asked, presenting two small capsules.

"Pills? Wait… Are those the suicide pills from Sabo?" Zoro realized in horror.

"Yeah," Sanji nodded. "They said someone had found a way to kill the Ds."

"Throw 'em away," Zoro barked.

Sanji shook his head, "Zoro, it's all fake!"

"What do you mean?"

"They never figured out how to kill the Ds."

"We can't take the chance. Just throw them away…"

"26 test subjects were unable to communicate or follow direction. They were eventually destroyed, right? Wrong…"

"Sanji what are you on about?"

"Asset 12-25."

"Chopper?"

"They never killed the failed experiments. They moved them."

"Does that matter right now?"

"Germa Six Six's reputation has been compromised internationally. 20 of the 26 failed experiments are now kept here in these warehouses. At least until they can all be moved safely to the Russian base, where the UN and WHO won't investigate."

"What about the others?" Zoro asked, finally giving into curiosity.

"A secondary location in the gulf."

"What does it mean?"

"It means they couldn't kill them. It means they can't kill them." Sanji breathed out. "And it means that eventually, they were able to communicate with all of them. And they're out there. They're still human underneath it all."

"We-"

"Zoro, if they get ahold of Luffy, his suffering will never end."

Zoro understood finally what was weighing so heavily on Sanji. Zoro nodded slowly, taking the pills from Sanji's hand. He tossed the pills over his shoulder with a sigh. "I got it, Sanji. And even if it kills me, Luffy will be free."

"The best man won."

"Huh?" Zoro scrunched up his face in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Sanji laughed bitterly, a sad smile crossing his face. "You know what? I hate you."

"Oh, whatever. Come on. I'm sorry. What are you talking about?"

Sanji pat Zoro's chest affectionately, "You won."

"I won what?"

Sanji frowned, "Luffy's checklist; his first love."

Zoro cleared his throat loudly, his cheeks stained pink, "Uh, what are you on about?"

"When I saw you on the bayou, I couldn't believe it," Sanji chuckled to himself. "There you two were; together! It was insane. Even when he couldn't remember who the hell he was, he found you. And you, you stayed with him."

"Well, it was just chance. Luck."

Sanji shook his head in refusal, "I don't think that's what it was."

"We should get moving."

"It's going to be up to you." Sanji murmured. "I'm leaving him in your hands."

"Shut up," Zoro snapped, wriggling through the hall. "You sound like an old man."

"Be careful," Sanji wheezed, holding his side. "The next room is…"

"Is what?" Zoro wondered, turning around as much as possible to look at Sanji.

Sanji licked his lips, "It's where Chopper is supposed to be held."

Zoro turned the knob and slowly stepped into the warehouse. He blindly looked around the brightly lit room, his hand raised to cover his eyes. "What is this?"

"Good God ya'll took long enough," a voice rang out.

"Yeah, we were startin' to think you were dead!"

Zoro and Sanji stood side by side for a confused moment before the lights were dimmed. Their eyes slowly focused and five forms suddenly came into view. Zoro couldn't help the smile that crossed his face and Sanji's mouth dropped open in shock.

"You came to rescue me!" Chopper shouted gleefully. "It's not like I was waiting for you bastards…"

Usopp dropped down from his position on the rafters. His hair had grown out even longer and his beard hadn't been shaven in days. He was a strong, imposing figure. He walked coolly over to the two men and slapped them both on the arms. "Seriously, don't ever scare me like that again," Usopp complained in a low whisper. "I thought I was gonna have to be in charge. Don't do that to me!"

Zoro grinned in amusement, "Yeah. It's good to see you too."