Since the streets were deserted, it only took me about 5 minutes to reach St. Francis Hospital. I stood before the tall building, its name emblemized in large

letters above me as my eyes scanned its height, before setting on the top. Eve's presence feels especially strong there. There's no mistaking it this time; she's

definitely here. Checking the ammunition in my gun, I made my way over to the blown open entrance. Peering inside, I cautiously crept over the broken glass,

stepping into the lobby which consisted of the receptionist and waiting areas. Of course, there are no people here, but at the same time there were no

monsters, which I found stranger. Still, I dare not lower my guard. I noticed the hospital directory plaque on the wall, so I walked toward it and skimmed its

contents until I found my destination. "The 13th floor." I muttered to myself.

I headed down the adjacent hallway towards the elevators without incident and, to my relief, found out that the elevators are still working. I leaned against

the back wall of the elevator opposite the doors as I ascended, the digital display counting the floors that I passed. Even though I just checked my gun, I

decided to check it again. It's one of the things that Daniel taught me as I patrolled with him. Even if I haven't used it, he told me to always check it without fail.

And so I did. Even if I just checked a few minutes ago, I check again. It's certainly a habit I'm grateful for.

With a loud ding!, the elevator doors slid open, the digital display showing the number 13. I quickly jumped out of the doors with my gun in the air, checking

both ways of the corridor; nothing. What's Eve playing at? Why aren't there any monsters? Is she confident that I won't find her? Or am I simply too late?

Whatever the case, I intend to stop her, so I made my way down the hall, peering over a corner to another corridor. Once I confirmed the coast was clear, I

walked around the corner and started down the adjacent hall, before I suddenly came to an abrupt halt with a gasp. I quickly walked up to a nearby window

and placed my hand on it, my eyes wide as I looked outside. Off in the distance, towering over most other buildings, was none other than the Chrysler Building.

But… wait, what? There's nothing there. I squinted my eyes slightly as I stared at the building, my hand pushing up against the glass. I could swear that I saw

something strange… "Am I seeing things?" I muttered to myself. I stared at the building for another moment, but nothing happened, so I decided to make my

way down the hall.

I eventually came upon the room I sought: the Research Lab. The room was a complete mess, with overturned tables and the floor strewn with paper and

broken glass. Of course, the room was empty, but I still held my gun up, ready for anything as I made my way to the center of the room. Tilted on its side

before me was a cylindrical metal container with its top open. On the floor beside it were glass vials containing white fluids, with one of them empty. I bit back a

curse at the sight. It was then that I realized I didn't know enough about the birth of an Ultimate Being. For some reason, I had my doubts that I still had 9

months to kill Eve before she gave birth. With my luck, she would only need a few days, or maybe even a few hours. I couldn't risk it. I turned toward the door

to search for Eve when my eyes fell upon the mystery blonde girl again. I was already used to this maybe-ghost-girl appearing out of nowhere, so I smiled at

her. "Can you give me a hand?" I asked her lightly. The girl smiled back at me and walked past the door. I quickly exited the room, turning to my left to see her

up a small flight of stairs. She goaded me to follow her, walking further and turning the corner, climbing up a second set. I quickly followed her and when I

turned the corner, I saw a door at the end of the steps. This must lead to the roof. I checked the ammunition in my gun one last time as I ascended the last

steps. Placing my hand on the door knob, I grasped it firmly, breathing in slowly. After a few seconds, I turned the knob and pushed the door ever so slowly,

the roof slowly filling my view.

There was nothing unusual about the roof. It was mostly flat, with some ventilation cubes toward the side. It seemed to be deserted. I crept further toward

the center of the roof, my hands grasping my gun tightly, my power focused onto my eyes as I searched for any kind of clue, but I didn't see anything. "So,

you've found this place…" an eerily familiar voice spoke behind me. My heart skipped a beat as I quickly spun around, pointing my gun above the door I just

exited, Eve hovering over it, looking down at me, a disgustingly amusing twinkle in her eye. I felt rage and hate course through me at the sight of her, but I

was able to keep calm, my heart slowing down. After we stared at each other for a few seconds, I lowered my gun. "You're trying to birth an Ultimate Being

with the sperm you took, right? The artificial sperm created by Dr. Klamp." I asked her, to which she sneered. "You're a bright one! Yes, that's correct." she

answered, placing a large clawed hand over her abdomen. "Are you the same Eve that tried to birth the Ultimate Being a decade ago? Back in Japan?" I asked

her calmly. Eve considered me for a moment before lowering herself down to my level, hovering some feet from me. I held my gun tightly in my hand, but I

made no motion to attack. I couldn't help my curiosity. "No, I wasn't. That was my… I suppose you'd call her my sister, although we do share the same

memories. That Eve indeed attempted to birth the Ultimate Being then. She attained consciousness in a female human; however, her human host had died

before she could make use of her. That proved inconsequential though, for her scientist husband, obsessed with bringing back his beloved wife, cultured her

liver cells. It was all she needed to form a body of her own. She was ready to conceive the Ultimate Being, but she made a fatal flaw." she continued, to which I

finished: "She used the sperm of the scientist." Eve smiled wickedly, nodding her head. "Correct. The cells of a human can't copulate with that of a higher being

such as us, so the Ultimate Being was born invalid."

Hearing Eve talk down to what that poor man and his wife went through really surged my anger to a boiling point, but I maintained composure, since Eve

seemed to be in a talkative mood. "Tell me, what happened to that Ultimate Being?" Eve brought a claw up to face, gesturing a flickering motion of disdain

when she explained. "Oh, it died shortly after, of course, along with that Eve. The human scientist was holding its deceased form as it melted in his arms,

causing him to melt as well. Honestly, I will never understand humans." she replied, somewhat bored. My brow furrowed at Eve from this, but I sighed, shaking

my head. "I suppose I shouldn't expect something like you to understand." Even if it was a monster, your child is still your child. "So, how long does it take

before the Ultimate Being is born?" I asked her. She sneered at me again, almost mockingly. "Who knows? It might be a few days, or even just a few hours.

We'll just have to wait and see."

We stared at each other again for a few more seconds, and then I lifted up my gun, pointing it at her. "Then I'll just have to kill you here now, before that can

happen!" I shouted, my eyes glowing as I focused my power into my gun. A blast of pure energy erupted from my gun when I pulled the trigger, heading

straight for Eve. She seemed surprised by this, but it wasn't enough to break her concentration as it hit her barrier. I took this chance to focus my power into

my feet and legs, and sprinted at break neck speed toward Eve, my police baton in my free hand. When the energy from my gun dissipated, I suddenly

appeared behind Eve, focusing my power into my arm, swinging my club with all my strength, yelling from the effort, but I was either too slow or too

predictable. Instead of hitting Eve, I hit her barrier. With a sneer and a wink, Eve spun her body and smacked me in the gut with her tail, knocking the wind out

of me, sending me flying. I landed hard on the floor, spinning a few times before stopping on my back, coughing out hard as I gasped for air. I shakily sat up,

staring at Eve angrily, focusing on my feet again as I disappeared on the spot. I tried to confuse Eve by running at random areas on the roof, but she seemed

to always know where I was. "What fun!" she shouted in glee, raising her two clawed hands, firing lasers at incredible speed. Suddenly I was on the

defensive! She always shot her lasers right where I was standing, so I had to keep running and ducking and rolling and side stepping just not to get hit. With

a growl, I managed to fire a few rounds from my gun at her, but they just stopped in mid air, falling harmlessly on the floor.

We had to have been at it for at least 10 minutes. No matter how hard I tried to get past her defenses, she always seemed to know what I would do in

advance, forcing me to stay on the defensive. I felt my exhaustion and fatigue catching up to me, and I knew it was only a matter of time before she really had

the upper hand. "What's wrong, Aya?! You're slowing down!" Eve shouted out, firing two more lasers at me. I ducked the first one and made to side step the

next, but then I screwed up. With a curse, I felt my leg seize up, screaming out in pain as Eve's laser shot through my shoulder, burning a hole straight

through. I fell onto the floor, crying out as I cupped my hand over it, glaring up at Eve as she quickly hovered over me. "Damn you!" I shouted out angrily. Eve

merely smiled her wicked smile at me, amusement in her eyes. "You've gotten stronger, but I guess this is the best you can do. The frailness of humans really

astounds me." she cooed mockingly. With a yell, I threw my gun at her, but it merely stopped in mid air, clattering down to the floor. "It really is a shame we

couldn't understand each other, Aya. We are of the same blood, after all."

My jaw dropped at this statement. "Same blood? What the hell are you talking about?! I'm nothing like you!" I shouted. I made to kneel up, but I cried out

again as Eve shot another laser, piercing my stomach this time. I fell forward, clenching my gut with my arm, shakily looking up at Eve. She kept smiling wickedly

at me, shaking her head slowly. "You still don't remember?" she mocked. Before I could ask anymore, however, a loud, booming sound suddenly erupted all

around us. It was then that two fighter jets soared past us. "What the…? Is that the Air Force?" I muttered, watching as they circled around, flying right toward

us. Eve watched them as they neared, chuckling to herself. "Pitiful. You humans and your little toys." she commented, flicking her wrist. I realized quickly what

she did and watched helplessly as the two fighter jets wobbled in the air, the two pilots having been set ablaze. One of them crashed to the streets below, but

the last remaining one somehow maintained its course, gliding straight in our direction. With booming laughter, Eve turned toward me with arms raised. "What

fun, what fun! Let's see if your luck still holds, shall we?!" she exclaimed, pointing at my right leg and firing another laser. I cried out again as it pierced my

thigh, clenching it with my hand. "Fuck you!" I shouted angrily. With another laugh, Eve flew directly up into the air. I didn't have time to watch where she was

going, the fighter jet falling down toward me. I tried to get up on my feet, but I fell down again, my leg burning with pain. My mitochondria couldn't heal me in

time!

I watched in horror as the jet was now mere feet in front of me. At that moment, I couldn't help but think about Daniel, Ben, Maeda, the Chief, and everyone

else who waited for me at the precinct. A violent shiver shot through my spine, a deathly cold suddenly shrouding my body. Tears welling up in my eyes, I

shakily threw my hands up in the air in one last, desperate attempt, as if I meant to catch the descending jet. Last thing I could remember before falling into

blackness was the pain of my bones crushing and red flames filling my sight.