Julianna froze the second she heard her name uttered by one of the two men who stood before her, not even hearing the doors as they closed behind her. Red eyes darted from one to the other, not sure what to do for the longest moment as she observed them as they observed her. As she had suspected, the men were the ages she estimated them to be:

The oldest was a man who was sitting in a rather strange chair that she'd never seen before. Dressed in a black suit with a white shirt, the only thing off about his appearance were the wires connecting him to the chair which was making faint beeping sounds. His heart rate, she guessed. His white hair and wrinkled face also hinted that he was nearing the end of his years in this life, especially if he was connected to that chair of his.

The second, however, was who drew the most attention from her. He was tall, much taller than she was, and dressed all in black- black shirt, pants, boots, and a black trench coat. His sharp facial features were drawn into an unreadable mask, and his eyes concealed behind sunglasses as black as his attire. The only contrasting color on him was his blonde hair which had been slicked back so well that not a strand was out of place.

'I suppose congratulations are in order. I didn't doubt for a moment you would not make it to me, unscathed." the old man began, drawing her attention to him. 'Though I was momentarily worried when you had difficulties dealing with the Hunter, you still managed to survive. Commendable, especially for a young girl such as you." When Julianna's eyes narrowed, he continued. 'You must be wondering how I know you or how you came to be in this place. It's only natural, seeing as your memory is no doubt fragmented from your long sleep." Julianna said nothing in return, only took a couple steps backward. She didn't know why, but her senses were on edge. Something was not right here, and- after glancing at the man in black- she had a feeling the man standing beside the elder had something to do with it. Her movements did not go unnoticed.

'There's no need to go back outside, dear girl unless you're in the mood for more of a challenge," the old man chuckled at this, coughing as he did so. 'It would be a shame, however, if you were to perish so soon. There is much still that I'd like to discuss with you." Julianna cast him a suspicious look, crossing her arms over her chest. 'The silent type, are we? A shame, surely someone as beautiful as you has an equally lovely voice."

'…Who are you, old one?" Julianna finally brought herself to ask. 'What is the meaning of all this?" At hearing her voice, the elder before her leaned his head back in his chair. Only the blonde man beside him remained motionless. Even from behind his sunglasses, Julianna could feel his gaze boring holes in her. To say that she wasn't alright with that was more than just an understatement.

'Straight to the point, I respect that." The man brought his hands up until his fingertips met. '"Where am I?" "Who are you?" "What do you want with me?" Those are the usual questions, ones to be expected at that. I did promise you answers, after all, and so answers you shall receive.

'You are standing in the halls of my mansion, one which has been inhabited by several generations of my family. It is elaborate, far more so than others. Anywhere you go in this place, you will find a multitude of artworks from around the world and various time periods, perhaps even some that you would recognize. As for who I am, I am but a mere old man who looks to postpone the inevitable; my death. I am Oswell Spencer, and I welcome you, transient guest." Julianna wasn't sure what to say to that. Transient guest? I'm not that old, she thought. Julianna blinked at that thought; how old even was she anymore? More importantly, what year even was it? Usually, she had no problem remembering both simple and important things but now…

'How much do you remember prior to waking up, Miss Dashara?" Spencer asked her, efficiently tearing her from her thoughts. 'There must be some fogginess, I'm sure. That's to be expected, especially since you've been sleeping for two hundred years." Julianna's eyes widened in surprise, her jaw dropping slightly; she'd heard him wrong, she had to have. She couldn't have been asleep for that long! As she tried to wrap her mind around this, bits of the conversation she'd heard before entering the room echoing throughout it; Two hundred years in a cryogenic sleep are more than enough time to wipe a memory…

'…sleeping for two hundred years," she muttered under her breath. Julianna supposed she had to agree with his point. It was no wonder she had no idea what the year was or even where she came from. But if she had been in a cryogenic sleep, then where exactly did they find-

'It took quite a long time for us to unearth you," Oswell continued conversationally. 'You were buried under quite a bit of rubble, after all. It seemed unlikely that anyone would have survived, but despite the odds, you were good and well. To someone like your mother, you must have been a nuisance. But to someone such as me, you are a miracle; a being who was said to have been long extinct that has now risen from the ashes like a phoenix from a flame." At these words, the man beside Spencer visibly stiffened but said nothing still. It was obvious to her that he didn't want to be here, much less engaging in any type of conversation. Julianna was beginning to wonder if there was something she was missing here.

'There's no such thing as miracles," Julianna couldn't help but say. 'It's only an illusion for those stupid enough to believe in them." That, at least, drew some expression from the tall man; he smirked. Not enough so that it was noticeable, but enough for her to see it for the brief second that it was there. His face fell back into that unreadable mask moments later after he noticed her staring at him. For a time, she was a bit taken aback; Julianna was more than certain that she'd seen a flash of red behind those impossibly concealing glasses he wore. Strange… and here Julianna was thinking she was the only person who had carmine eyes. Surely it was just her imagination. It was impossible for a human to have eyes such as she… wasn't it?

'It's just a matter of perspective," Spencer replied with the same tone she had taken. 'Nonetheless, you are a rarity in this time. Never had I thought to come across a being like you, and once again, I am surprised."

'What do you mean "being like me"? What is it that you are implying?" Oswell simply laughed at this, something which felt like a smack in the face to Julianna.

'Well this is a surprise; not only do you not know how old you are, but you don't even know your own blood." He chuckled again. Julianna's eye twitched in annoyance; she didn't see what was so funny about any of this. How would he feel if he was in her position? The arrogance of men, as always. 'I would have expected you to at least know that." The manner in which he said those last words reminded Julianna vaguely of someone who used to speak to her like that when she did something wrong… dammit, why was her memory so foggy?

She wasn't sure when it happened or who was responsible, but everything was pushed to the wayside when Julianna heard a gun go off. All at once Julianna felt a searing pain go through her right shoulder, sending her to one knee as she clutched it with her left hand, blood spilling out and staining her black jacket. She remained like that for several minutes before, miraculously (and she used that word very lightly), Julianna felt something being pushed out of her shoulder. At the feeling of something small and metal pressing against her hand, Julianna drew it away one for a single used bullet to fall into it. Her free hand rose to touch the place where it had entered her flesh only to find no trace that she'd ever been shot. But that was impossible, wasn't it?

'How in the world…?"

'Do you see now, Julianna?" Oswell asked her. 'You are no ordinary human. In fact, you're not human at all, though your outward appearance would say otherwise. You are part of an extinct race, one which was birthed by a virus known as Sanguineous Vampirosa… better known to humans now as Eclipse." When Julianna didn't move, he continued. 'Eclipse was a virus which was contracted only through blood, true to its name, and killed off any and all red blood cells it came into contact with. Once infected, a person would either die from the agony of their blood boiling in their veins or become a Sang. Indeed, they are no different from the creatures you fought this night, only instead of the flesh of others, Sangs craved the blood of the living to replace the blood cells they constantly lost."

'In other words, they were vampires." Julianna whispered.

'In a sense, yes, but they were able to mask their presence well enough to strike when someone least expected them to." She finally raised her head when he said these words. 'But little did anyone realize was that Eclipse originated another race, one which was nothing like the murderous Sangs. Instead, Eclipse gave them the powers of a superhuman; strength, speed, agility, intelligence, all at the expense of losing their own humanity and with it, their mortality."

'And you think I'm one of them?" Julianna said sardonically.

'No, I know for a fact you aren't one of them. You are much more special than those called Advents."

'Then what is it that you think I am?"

'You, like many before you, are part of two worlds. You were born of a union between an Advent mother and a Sang father, or vice versa, that much I do not know. What I do know is, despite your mixed heritage, you are a gift from God himself. You are the last of your kind; an Advent Sang hybrid."

Julianna's expression fell. She didn't say anything for a long, long time.

An Advent Sang hybrid… How was this possible? There were no such things!

Then how do you explain your body rejecting a bullet and then healing itself?

Julianna very slowly stood up, glancing again at the empty chamber in her hand before tossing it to the side. The sounds of metal bouncing off of stone were much louder and clearer in her ears than it should have been, but that was not important at the moment. Her red eyes followed the stone flooring up from the elaborate rug in the center all the way up to the man in the chair.

'Now that you know what you are and why you are so unique, I can now address the matter at hand," Oswell said casually. Julianna almost didn't want to know what it was but didn't outright say so. 'Since it's clear to me that Eclipse is more than capable of giving eternal life, you have something that I and my compatriots need." Julianna's blood went cold. 'You are the answer that I have been searching for. You carry within you the Eclipse virus, the Fountain of Youth. Where all other attempts have failed, with your blood and Eclipse, we will finally have the means to create a new race and a new world."

Julianna stared at him for a long, long moment. She didn't know whether to laugh at the old man's delusions or to turn and leave in disgust. It was clear to her that he had more than a few screws loose. I'm a Fountain of Youth? Right and I am also an angel sent to save everything from certain death. She didn't condemn his wants to avoid death, for she was certain that in his position, anyone would be desperate to stave it off. But to go to such lengths…

'I assure you, we've no intentions of bringing undue harm upon you," Oswell spoke, ignoring the look on Julianna's face. 'All we ask is that you provide a sample of your blood and aid us in developing a better understanding of Eclipse and the different strains of it. Once we have what we need, I give you my word that you will be free to go." Julianna's brow furrowed suddenly.

'Are you saying you intend to hold me here against my will?" The expression on Oswell's face provided the answer to her question. That was all she needed to decide what to do next; her right hand, which had been inching upwards to her right pistol, suddenly grabbed it and pulled it out, aiming it directly at the old man who didn't so much as flinch.

'Resorting to violence are we?" He articulated in amusement. 'Aren't you a spirited one?"

'Provided you were standing in my place, I've no doubts you'd do much the same," Julianna spat, red eyes flaring. 'You may have done me a service by bringing me out of this cryogenic sleep and giving me a blood transfusion, but if you think for a second that I will allow you to use me as your personal guinea pig, you are deeply mistaken."

No words passed from her or Oswell for a long tense moment. He and the tall man beside him shared a brief look, during which Oswell nodded in approval to some unspoken order. The blonde man glanced back to her and began walking with a purpose towards Julianna. Aiming her gun at him, she fired off a round only as a warning for him to back off. The man was in one place, then another, faster than her eyes could track. Taken aback for a brief second, she pulled the trigger and shot three more rounds, each of which was avoided by those lightning quick movements, movements which were so fast that only an after image of where he once was remained.

Losing track of his movements, Julianna was completely unprepared when he suddenly appeared right in front of her, making a move to grab her throat. Julianna retaliated by avoiding his grab and instead swinging a fist at his face only for that to be avoided with the same speed with which he avoided her bullets. Refusing to back down, Julianna continued to strike out at him first with her fists, then resorting to using her powerful legs to kick him back and away from her.

The blonde man retaliated by grabbing her by her arm and throwing her off to the right, her back colliding with one of the bookcases, the glass cracking from the force. Where any normal person would have taken a few minutes to come back from such a collision, Julianna jumped right back up to her feet to avoid his fast approach. Leaping up and over his head, she fired both guns, this time releasing multiple rounds which should have been impossible for him to avoid.

Rolling once she hit the ground and spinning around to face him, she was surprised when he responded to her gun assault by producing a firearm of his own and sending a few bullets her way. How exactly she did this, she'll never know, but her sharp eyes saw the bullets as they came her way, giving her an opportunity to roll out of the way and return fire.

Back and forth they went, bullets flying everywhere but never scoring a hit on their respective targets. It was only when one grazed her shoulder that Julianna switched tactics and holstered her weapons to instead launch herself at the man when he rushed towards her. She was able to force him back all but two feet before he easily stopped his movements. A strong elbow connected to her back, knocking the wind from her momentarily before she was once again tossed to the side.

As before, Julianna got right back up, refusing to give up. Both she and the blonde man stopped a few feet away from one another, neither so much as breathing heavily despite their vigorous fighting. Despite the situation, Julianna couldn't help but be impressed with his abilities. Even though she had to give him due credit, he was still with that old man in this, and she was not about to be a prisoner in an unknown place.

Throwing everything else to the wind, they simultaneous charged at each other, Julianna gaining the upper hand this time when she managed to land a kick to the center of his chest, the force of which drove the man back. Recovering quickly, he returned her kick with an equally- if not more- powerful kick of his own which knocked Julianna clear off her feet. This time, she collided with one of the stone pillars in the room, cracking her head on it.

Stunned, Julianna quickly got away from it and shook her head to clear the brief moment of dizziness. Hearing the fast approaching footsteps, she instinctively grabbed a gun and fired a round without looking in the man's direction. This time, she heard a surprised grunt come from him, making her turn in his direction. Judging by the rapidly growing blood stain on his shoulder, indeed, the same one which she had been shot, that was where the bullet had gone.

And so she was more than surprised when he merely shook it off. Backhanding her so hard that blood shot out of her mouth, he took her off guard by grabbing her from behind, effectively pinning Julianna's arms to her sides. Struggling desperately, Julianna did everything she could to fight the hold. His hold on her tightened so hard that it was almost difficult for her to breath.

All struggles were halted, however, when the cold barrel of a gun was pressed to her left temple.

'I'm afraid, Miss Dashara, that leaving is not an option for you. You will either aid us…"

'In your dreams, I will," Julianna hissed despite having a gun to her temple. The hold which the blonde man held her tightened when she moved slightly.

'Or, you will die. I would rather see you conduct yourself like a lady and do as we ask, but if you continue with this nonsense of yours, I'll have no choice but to have you destroyed. You may indeed be strong and able, but not even a hybrid like you can come back from a bullet to the brain." Oswell continued, ignoring her statement. Her red eyes bore holes in the elder. Anger was raging through her veins, and the fact that she was being held against her will was only adding fuel to the fire. She chewed on her lower lip furiously as she considered her predicament:

On one hand, she could say damn the consequences and fight with everything in her. Were it not for the fact that her captor was holding a gun to her head, she did not immediately do so. Had he been unarmed, however, Julianna could have found a way to slip away and would resume whipping his ass all over the place (or, at least, trying to.). But on the other hand, she could bide her time to escape under the pretense of going along with what they say. Even then she still ran the risk of being filled full of lead, but at least, she would have a sporting chance. The idea of surrendering was unappealing to her, and not because it would damage her pride.

It's not surrendering if you are able to get away, her mind offered. That was true; she wasn't giving in completely, only playing them as they appeared to be playing her. It would just be pretending, that's all, pretending to be the perfect puppet… at least, until she managed to get out. Nothing more, nothing less.

'I'll agree to stay only on one condition," Julianna finally said, never blinking or looking away from Oswell, who seemed surprised that she would even say such a thing.

'Which is?"

'If I give you what you want and do as you ask, you must give me your word that you will let me leave this place without any resistance on your part. Do so, and I will aid you." Her face grew, if possible, more serious for her next words. 'But if you conduct yourself in a manner which I find threatening, then you can be assured that I will fight you every step of the way, regardless of the cost." Spencer said nothing to her in return, only watched her carefully. What he was expecting to see, Julianna didn't know, but what he witnessed was her steely resolve.

'Very well," he replied. 'I give you my word that once all is said and done, you will be free to go when and where you wish. Until such a time, you will remain here and conduct yourself in a pleasant manner." He leaned forward in his chair. 'Now that you have confirmation of your terms, you must make your choice- life or death?"

Julianna knew that his agreement was a farce, it had to be. He said those words too easily and too calmly. But what other choice did she have in the manner? Her crimson gaze glanced up at the blonde man, more than surprised when she saw equally red eyes glancing down at her in return. Each glared at each other for a long, long moment before she looked back to Spencer. The sounds of the gun pressed to her temple being cocked filled her left ear.

That was all she needed to make her decision.

'Fine then," she grumbled, casting her eyes downwards. 'I'll do it." She refused to look up, hating herself for having landed herself in this situation, even if it wasn't really her own fault.

'A wise decision," Spencer said with a smile which was in no way, shape, or form a good one. 'You will not regret it, I assure you."

Yeah right, she thought as she was roughly released by the blonde man who put away his firearm. Julianna glanced at him as his footsteps retreated from her, still not quite sure exactly what he was. One thing was for certain- he gave her a damn good fight.

A/N- An interesting side note: three of the four beta readers for this story agreed that Julianna had this fight won. But we all know that it's just not in Wesker's nature to lose to a woman.