Seth intercepted Dante's strike, blocking his view of Vale, who was behind him with Dr. Brooks, busy unfastening Helios from the table.
"Get out of my way, Seth!" Dante growled.
"Forget it," Seth hissed through clenched teeth.
So Seth wasn't going to back down either.
Seth swung and hit him squarely on the left temple. The blow was hard, dull, painful—a thudding impact that left his ears ringing, something he hadn't felt in years. For a split second, everything spun. But he couldn't afford even a moment of weakness. Any lapse in focus could mean his end.
At least temporarily.
Spider was injured, and even though he was a damn good fighter, he wouldn't stand much chance alone—and wounded—against the Institution's guards. Dante pulled his hand back, crouched, and countered with a strong uppercut that snapped Seth's chin upward.
"Spider?!" Dante shouted without turning around.
"I've got the ones in the hall!" Spider called back behind him.
Good. At least he didn't have to worry about Spider for now. He'd let him know if he needed help.
Dante focused on Seth again and pressed the attack. A kick to the side—blocked by Seth's forearm. The guy was fast, damn fast. If it weren't for Vale, who was lifting Helios off the table with Dr. Brooks, Dante might've actually enjoyed this fight.
Seth's next punch landed square on his nose.
He heard the crack, felt the warm blood running down his lips.
Felt the adrenaline surging through his veins.
His head snapped back from the impact; he grabbed Seth's arm and yanked him toward him with a sharp pull. Using the other man's weight for balance, he steadied his stance and headbutted him hard.
Pain exploded across his forehead as their skulls collided. Everything around him blurred. He ignored the pain and the blood running down from the fresh gash on his brow. His heart pounded in his chest.
He casted a quick glance over Seth's shoulder. Vale met his eyes with an arrogant grin before following Dr. Brooks, who had slung Helios over his shoulder.
"Stay here!" Dante roared after them.
A gunshot rang out from Spider's direction. Dante barely caught sight of Vale clutching his arm and stumbling before Seth's hands closed around his throat.
The other guard's grip was like a vise, crushing Dante's windpipe. He couldn't breathe—he had to act. As Seth squeezed the air out of him, Dante lifted his hands and thrust them upward between Seth's arms. He drove his knee hard into Seth's stomach and used the brief moment of distraction to wrench himself free from the chokehold. He gasped for air the instant his lungs were free again.
Not that he intended to rest.
Dante pressed on, driving his knee into Seth's chest and raining his fists down mercilessly on his head. Again and again. The dull sound of flesh striking flesh echoed in his ears, mingling with the ragged breathing of the man beneath him. Only when Seth went limp—his arms falling to his sides, offering no more resistance—did Dante finally stop.
A heartbeat later, another gunshot tore through the silence. The bullet struck Seth's skull. Blood splattered across the floor.
"Come on, big guy. I got Vale in the arm. If we hurry, we can catch him before he disappears," Spider said beside him, breathless but with that same unshakable defiance in his voice.
Dante turned his head. Spider stood there—a wreck of blood and sheer willpower. His nose was broken, his lip split, his left hand held protectively close to his body. He looked worse than Dante had ever seen him. Yet Spider flashed him his usual cocky grin.
"Aaaw! Don't worry about me. Come on! Let's go!" he shouted, full of drive.
"I was just wondering if I should leave you behind in case your legs are busted," Dante shot back, standing up and glancing at the table where Helios had been strapped down.
Blood still clung to the metallic surface. Anger burned hot in his veins. He was about to look away and go after Vale when Spider suddenly stopped, staring in shock at the medicine counter.
"Keep moving, Spider, we don't have time!" Dante barked.
But the words died in his throat when he saw what Spider was staring at.
Spider slowly turned toward him, fury in his eyes like a gathering storm.
"Is that a fucking heart?!" he snarled.
On the counter, among trays and medical instruments, stood several glass containers. Spider was right—inside one of them floated a heart. Next to it, a stomach, a liver, and a gallbladder. Dante's eyes flicked back to the blood on the metal table, and the pieces clicked into place.
The realization cut through him like ice in his gut.
That lunatic had cut out Helios's fucking heart?! What else had he done to him during those three days? How many times had they opened him up?!
"Goddamn bastard!" Dante snarled.
He clenched his fists and broke into a run, veins straining in his neck, adrenaline pounding through him. Bloodstains streaked across the floor—gruesome traces that would lead them straight to Vale.
"He was alive just now, right?" Spider asked, worry in his voice. "You guys regenerate your organs when they're damaged, don't you?!"
"I don't know!" Dante snapped, harsher than he meant to. The pressure in his chest nearly stole his breath. "I've never exactly tested ripping my own heart out to see if it grows back!"
"Damn it, Dante, no need to bite my head off!" Spider shot back, his voice trembling between anger and real concern. "I'm worried about him too! Just because you're losing it doesn't mean I'm not scared for him!"
Dante exhaled slowly.
"Sorry," he growled. "Let's find that bastard."
He moved on, following the blood trail down the hallway. With every step he grew faster, angrier, more determined.
"How do you want to handle it?" Spider asked, noticeably calmer now. "Far as I know, Daddy Vale isn't exactly a fighter."
"Maybe not," Dante replied, checking his magazine as he spoke. "But that doesn't mean he can't shoot. I heard he trains regularly at the firing range. And he keeps himself in shape, apparently."
"Great. So he can aim. At least we know what we're dealing with."
Spider grimaced, glancing around. "You think there are still more guards down here?"
Dante shrugged. "No idea. Thomas said he didn't know for sure. Just watch my back in case anyone shows up."
"I got you," Spider said curtly. Then, after a brief pause: "By the way… where the hell are we, anyway?"
"No idea. Let's just follow the blood trail—they can't have gone far."
They pressed on. The corridor was bathed in cold neon light, the air thick with the smell of metal, sweat, and disinfectant. Blood marked the floor in uneven drops—a morbid guide. But the trail grew fainter… until it vanished completely.
"Shit," Dante muttered under his breath, clenching his fists.
"Somewhere around here they have to be," Spider hissed. "I can smell his damn cologne."
Dante glanced at him, puzzled, but said nothing. They moved on quietly, listening at the doors and scanning the nameplates. One caught his eye. He stopped to take a closer look.
He traced the engraving with his finger. The name felt cold, weighty.
"Ophelia," Dante read aloud, softly.
Spider was suddenly at his side and nodded. Dante took the safety off his pistol while Spider grabbed two knives. Dante pressed down the handle and…
…nothing happened.
The door was locked.
"You think he's in there?" Spider whispered.
"Ophelia is Helios's mother's name. If Vale isn't here, he's already out of the facility. Maybe he wants to take her with him before he disappears," Dante said absentmindedly, snorting with disdain. "Besides, I don't think he cares much for his subordinates."
Spider was already kneeling. "You hold the line."
With calm, practiced movements he slipped a knife into the gap beside the lock and began to expose the wiring behind it. Sparks flashed briefly; the faint clink of metal on metal echoed down the corridor.
Dante stayed close behind him, weapon raised, eyes forward. The corridor lay eerily still. Only the quiet hum of the neon tubes and the distant drip of water could be heard.
Slowly it sank in — everything he'd seen before. Helios had endured three hellish days, and if his mother was really in that room, then…he hoped she was alright and had handled it as stoically as she always did. Although under these circumstances he doubted it.
He wanted Vale to pay for this. Revenge no longer felt outlandish. He wanted Vale to suffer for what he'd done to him ten years ago and for what Helios had been forced to endure over the past three days.
"Vale is mine," Dante growled in a low, dangerous voice.
Spider, still crouched by the door, glanced up at him and gave a faint grin.
"I'll take care of the rest. Maybe I'll find Helios and get him out while you have fun with Daddy Vale. Depends on what's waiting for us in there."
Dante looked down at him. Spider looked awful — smeared with blood, pale, breathing unevenly. Yet the same determination burned in his eyes as before.
"Thanks for coming with me," Dante said quietly. "I never would've made it this far alone."
"I couldn't just let you break in here by yourself! Next time, though, we're taking Helios with us again. I miss his sarcasm."
Dante exhaled deeply, trying to loosen the knot in his chest. For once he appreciated Spiders constant jokes even in this dire situation. It helped to ease the tension and keep a clear mind. At least somewhat.
"After this mess, I've had enough adventure for a while."
"Understandable," Spider said with a faint smile as he stood up. A soft click followed — the lock gave way. "Alright then, let's see what's behind door number one."
"Wait."
Dante raised his gun, aimed at the neon lights overhead, and fired.
A loud shattering echoed through the corridor as sparks rained to the floor. The hallway plunged into darkness, leaving only a dim glow a few meters ahead.
"Good call," Spider murmured.
They waited a moment for their eyes to adjust to the darkness.
"I'll go first," Dante said.
He kicked the door open and burst into the room, ducking low and keeping to the right of the entrance. The air smelled faintly of decay and heavily of lilies. He glanced around — the room was almost completely dark. The only real light came from a human-sized water tank in the center of the room.
Inside floated a woman — lifeless, suspended like a doll in glass — but Dante barely gave her a second look. His eyes swept the room until he spotted a chair with a thin arm hanging limply over its side.
Helios!
Every instinct screamed at him to run to him, but first, he had to deal with Vale.
A click came from the direction of the chair — the unmistakable sound of a gun being cocked.
"Dante." Vale's calm, composed voice cut through the darkness. He sounded amused. "I thought my men had taken care of you by now. You're apparently as resilient as they say."
Dante aimed his weapon toward the voice. In the flickering light he could make out the vague outline of a man — elegantly dressed, holding a pistol loosely in one hand.
"I have a duty to finish," Dante said — far calmer than he actually felt. "Besides you've got something, that belongs to me."
Vale laughed. "A duty. How adorable." he said in that insufferably arrogant tone. Then his voice turned cold. "Consider your contract to be canceled. Josh, show our guests the exit."
"Yes, sir!" came the reply.
Another man stepped forward from the shadows — tall, muscular, rifle at the ready. The metallic click of the chamber loading echoed sharply in the silence.
So it was just Josh left? That should be child's play for us, Dante thought as he took position.
But before he could lunge at Josh, Spider leapt forward and attacked him.
"I've got the musclehead!" Spider shouted to him, so Dante turned his attention to Vale.
He charged toward him, dodging to the side as Vale fired. Pain exploded in his left upper arm, but he didn't slow down.
Dante's focus narrowed to Vale and to all the pain and fear he'd endured alone over the years, until Helios had discovered his secret. If he caught Vale here and now, it would all be over. Helios would be free, Dante would have his revenge, and all the illegal experiments would finally come to an end.
Everything would go back to normal. If only he could take down this arrogant, rich bastard.
Another shot hit his right thigh; he stumbled but raised his gun, aiming at Vale, who was still dimly illuminated by the faint light from the water tank. Dante fired three times. He hit Vale—he couldn't tell exactly where—but Vale went down.
Dante walked over, kicked the pistol away, and grabbed him by the collar. He pulled him close, only to realize the man was actually unconscious. Dante let him drop carelessly to the ground. He looked around quickly. Spider was still fighting Josh, and there was no sign of Dr. Brooks.
Wherever the doctor was hiding—it didn't matter. Dante left Vale lying there and rushed to Helios, who sat slumped in the chair. His head hung to the side, his body wrapped in some kind of sheet.
Dante knelt before his lover and gently brushed a hand across his cheek.
Finally, he was with him. His hand trembled slightly—why wasn't Helios responding?
"Lio, wake up, I'm here," he said, his voice trembling.
No reaction.
"Lio!" he said again, louder this time, desperate.
Slowly, with a flutter, Helios's eyes opened. His breathing quickened, pupils dilating. He looked terrified, yet his body didn't move at all.
Strange…
Dante stroked his cheek again, gently, to calm him.
"I'm here, Lio," he said softly.
"Dante…?" Helios asked, his voice rough and heavy.
But he didn't look at him. His head still hung forward, not even trying to lift it to meet Dante's gaze.
"What did they do to you?" Dante whispered. Carefully, he lifted Helios's chin so he could see his face. When their eyes met, tears welled in Helios's eyes.
"You're really here… aren't you?" Helios whispered in relief. "I'm not imagining this?"
Dante clenched his jaw. Helios looked exhausted, as if he might collapse at any moment. His face was pale, dark circles shadowed his eyes, and they were red and swollen—as though he'd cried far too much. Dante brushed away a tear from the corner of his eye before it could fall.
"I'm really here," he said softly. "Can't you move? Are you restrained?"
"No. They're giving me a sedative to keep me calm," Helios said quietly. "The needle's in my left arm—pull it out, and hide your knife in the sheet."
His gaze turned cold.
"I'd like to thank the doctor personally for his hospitality."
Dante pulled the IV from Helios's arm, worry flickering across his face. He slipped his knife discreetly into the folds of the sheet Helios was wrapped in.
"Will you manage?" Dante asked cautiously.
Helios looked at him silently for a moment. "Later," he whispered, his voice broken. "What about father?"
"I don't know," Dante said. He could hear Spider still fighting Josh nearby. He couldn't stay here too long—but for their escape, it would be better if Helios could move. "A little help would be nice!" Spider souted annoyed. "Can you wait here for me a moment?"
The corner of Helios's mouth twitched faintly. "A few more minutes won't make much difference."
Dante was just about to lower his head again when a gunshot tore through his back—then another through his head.
In an instant, the world went dark, and he fell into nothingness.