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The ruined schoolyard was silent, the air heavy with tension as Alice and Nemesis stood on the grass facing each other.
Nemesis raised the massive gatling gun in his hands. His finger squeezed the trigger, the barrels began to spin, and flames burst from the muzzle.
"Ratatatatatatatata—!"
Bullets roared forth in six blazing streams, a storm of firepower tearing across the lawn. Shell casings clattered to the ground, striking with a relentless metallic rhythm.
With a 5,000-round belt and a blistering rate of fire, the weapon turned killing into art—any target unlucky enough to stand in its path would be shredded in a heartbeat.
Alice, relying on her reflexes, dodged the incoming storm and leapt into the shattered school building, ducking behind a pillar.
Bullets chewed through the concrete, leaving the pillar scarred and pitted.
Pressing against the cover, Alice hissed in pain. Her shoulder was bleeding, crimson dripping freely. She quickly wrapped the wound with a makeshift bandage.
A bullet had ripped clean through her shoulder during the dodge. If she'd been even a fraction slower, she would've been torn to pieces.
Nemesis stopped firing and marched forward.
Alice heard the heavy, steady footsteps approaching and forced her mind to think fast.
Nemesis rounded the pillar, raising the gatling again. But Alice was nowhere in sight. The barrels slowed, falling silent.
"Ratatatatatatata—!"
Suddenly, Alice burst out from the opposite side, guns blazing.
Her bullets struck Nemesis, drawing only streaks of blood but doing little to slow him down.
Nemesis swung around, his gatling gun roaring to life again, spitting out another wall of fire.
Alice ducked and weaved through the storm, tossing her empty rifles aside and drawing the twin military knives at her waist.
Nemesis paused as she vanished again, striding quickly toward her last position. Just as he closed in, Alice reappeared from the opposite side and slashed deep into his body with her blades.
Nemesis didn't even flinch. He stared at her blankly, then swung a massive fist that sent Alice flying.
Glancing down at the knives buried in his torso, he ripped them out and tossed them aside like trash.
Alice staggered back to her feet and rushed him, trading blows—but Nemesis's raw strength overwhelmed her. A single punch hurled her against the wall, shattering concrete and columns around them.
Power, regeneration, sheer resilience—Nemesis outclassed her in every way.
Alice found herself fighting a losing battle.
"Alice… you need me. I can feel it!"
"Stop resisting. Your body is calling out for me!"
"There's no reason to fight it—we're one and the same!"
Venom's voice echoed in her head, over and over, cutting through the chaos.
Her focus faltered for an instant. Nemesis took the chance and smashed her with another blow, sending her crashing through a wall.
"I need you! My body craves you! What are you waiting for?!"
The moment her back slammed into the rubble, Alice screamed at the top of her lungs. She knew—he was close.
And right on cue, a shadow streaked past Nemesis, racing straight toward her.
Alice's eyes widened. She knew that form instantly. She opened her arms.
Black tendrils wrapped tightly around her body, consuming her clothes and clinging to her form like a second skin.
She flipped backward, landing smoothly on the ground and skidding to a stop several meters away.
Now she stood clad in a sleek black suit, a gray spider emblem blazing across her chest and back.
"What… what is this?"
At the temporary command post outside Raccoon City, the commander stared at the feed in shock. Alice was transformed, wrapped in some kind of black armor.
"No idea, sir."
The staff exchanged confused looks at the sight of her new appearance.
"Forget it. Stick to the plan," the commander ordered after a moment's hesitation.
"Yes, sir."
The operators turned back to their instruments.
Back on the battlefield, Nemesis advanced to the edge of the broken wall, gatling gun spinning once more, flames bursting out with renewed fury.
"Let's show them… my true power."
"Then come on."
Alice locked eyes with the charging Nemesis. The black liquid that had been coiling around her neck shot upward, covering her head. Her spider-sense flared, guiding her as she slipped between bullets with impossible speed.
It was like she was dancing in a storm of gunfire. Each shot came close enough to graze her but never touched, her enhanced reflexes and strength making her untouchable.
Within seconds, Nemesis's massive machine gun clicked empty.
He tossed the weapon aside and strode forward with heavy steps.
Alice matched him, charging head-on.
Their fists collided with a thunderous impact, and Nemesis was blasted backward, smashing into a wall. Rubble collapsed around him, but he clawed his way out almost immediately, storming back toward her without hesitation.
Alice's hands clenched tight. The battle suit on her arms rippled, transforming into blades. She dashed forward to meet him.
Moving with a lethal mix of agility and raw strength, she slipped past Nemesis's strikes, carving shallow wounds into his body.
But his monstrous healing factor knitted the damage back together almost instantly.
Alice froze for half a second, weighing her next move.
Nemesis didn't waste the opportunity—he lunged straight at her.
In response, Alice's suit erupted into dozens of black tendrils, each ending in a gleaming blade.
Before Nemesis could react, more than a dozen pierced through his body. The rest coiled around his arms and slowly hoisted him into the air.
Alice stepped closer, pulling him toward her with the writhing tendrils until his face was inches from hers. In her hand, a blade gleamed.
One swift arc of steel—
His head thudded to the ground.
The blades impaling his body melted back into liquid, slithering into Alice's suit, merging once more into the living armor.
Nemesis's body collapsed limply to the floor, headless.
"....."