"Fine, I will", she started and placed Olalla's copied fingerprint on the scanner. "But don't you dare lay a finger on him or-"

"Or what? You can't use Lottie's powers, you're just a capsule for them. To be transferred to a higher plain", Dance said, drifting off. "Now, open the door, or I shoot him in the neck".

"Keep your hair on dear", Hyde murmured under his breath and twisted under his grip. Dance forced his arm forward so it pressed his finger on the scanner. Natalia did the same.

"Welcome back, Mr Hyde", exclaimed a very British voice on the other end of a speaker. "I do hope you have returned to see me, it has been a very long time since you visited".

"Stevenson, I assume", Hyde asked and batted away Dance's hand from his mouth.

"Louis, my friend, is that you?"

"No, it's his son, Robert".

"Gah, you sound so much like him".

"Now, now, we need to get into the chamber. It's an emergency".

"Of course, but I need the codeword".

"The... The codeword?"

"Yes. You think your father would just let you off with a trick fingerprint scanner and a pat on the back?"

"I have a gun barrelful of monocane about it be in my throat that sort of hopes that he would".

"Who's down there?"

"The Enemy, Natalia spoke quietly into the speaker. "The Enemy is here".

"I see. The chamber is yours then. Good luck, bure mwanamume".

"Bure mwanamume?"

"It's my name in Swahili".
The door creaked open, it hadn't been opened in a long time. Inside it was ice cold and on the walls condensation had frozen into clear glaciers. In the middle of the room was a bathtub shaped chamber with a glass cover on top. Thick metal clamps were on the sides and on the front was some sort of snake like creature in a glass box connected to the chamber. It hissed wildly and four crimson eyes opened as it rose out of the case. It had vicious, diamond-shaped scales the colour of emeralds and flame.

"Uhamisho nyoka. The Transfer Serpent. This is what will give Lottie back her abilities".

"But Lottie is the one in there", Dance answered, rather puzzled.

"Is she?" Natalia asked and glided her stilettos along the floor. "If you say so".
She tiptoed around the hissing serpent that curled and glinted its pearl white fangs, then placed her hand on the glass case. Slowly she closed her eyes and seemed to be communicating to whoever was inside.

"What are you saying to her, it?" Dance snorted, slightly loosening his grip on Hyde in consequence of his curiosity.

"I'm saying that Mummy's home". As soon as she finished her sentence a huge blast of white smoke was released from the chamber, tinged red and green. From the smoke came a grotesque creature, a hound, snarling. But it didn't have one head, nor two, but three. All spitting blood from their canines.

"What the Hell is that?" Hyde asked, eyes widening at the sight in front of him. He got away from Hyde's grip and could only stare in awe and horror at the hound from Hell.

"It's a Cerberus. The protector of the demon underworld and afterlife. Surely you've heard of it".

"But what's it doing here?" Hyde enquired and the beast swung one of its mighty, clawed paws at him. He managed to move away from it, but it left a gaping gash in the concrete flooring.

"It's her subconscious. All that power and no reality to balance out her mind", Natalia sighed. "She has the mind of a child. That's why there's been so wild weather, why demons have found it so easy to enter the surface world. She's angry at me".

"Why? What did you do?"

"I'm her mother. Every child looks to theirs to protect them, but me, I left her to MIO to be locked in here for decades".

"You are not her mother though. You're a clone of her", Hyde exclaimed over the deafening sound as the Cerberus roared and lashed out with sharpened teeth. He had started to add everything together. "You mean-". The Cerberus smashed his paw down into the ground where he stood and he rolled to the side. Dance took Natalia's gun from her belt and immediately shot a round of six into the beast's chest.

"Oh, you seriously are an idiot", Natalia retorted to his actions and snatched back the gun. "It's not really here. It's just... a dream, half-drafted into reality".

"Then what do we do?" Dance yelled, starting to become desperate as he dodged the paws.

"The only thing that can send it back is the Hyde sword. It can separate the creature from its original thought, so it dies". Hyde pulled it from its cover and pointed it at the hound. It did not stir or pause its attack at all.

"Well then let's use it, not point it like some wand", Dance snarled and grabbed the blade from Hyde's hands. It turned red hot in his fingertips and burnt him so he screamed horribly.

"It can only be held by a Hyde", Natalia said calmly. "You absolute -"

"Save the insults for later, Lotts", Hyde interrupted before Natalia could finish, and retrieved the sword. Natalia spun around, double checking she heard him correctly. Hyde looked at her for a moment, with a half-smile. "I know". And with a flourishing movement, Hyde sliced the beast clean through and it vanished into the air.

"That seemed easier than it was originally", Hyde quipped and heard the click of the monocane gun to his spine this time.

"My threat stands Olejova. We've had our fun, but now open the chamber, or I shoot", Dance whispered, eyes ice blue in the light.

"Now, come on dear, let's just leave this. You won't get anything out of that chamber except more trouble for yourself. Just leave, please", Natalia lulled.

"No!" he shouted, his eyes darkening again. "Open it, now!"

"No. I won't. And you will let Robert go, or I will reign Hell on you for the rest of time". Dance searched in his jacket and pulled out a small, black device. The Hyde-block, from the start of this journey. He pressed a button on it and Natalia fell to the ground like a puppet cut from its string.

"No, not again", Hyde shouted, and Dance restrained him back.

"Look at her", Dance whispered, holding his neck up so he looked straight at her. She was struggling through the same pain she felt the first time he hit that button. Almighty pain, like something breaking her skull apart from the inside. "Look at your precious little MIO copy. She won't listen to me. Tell. Her. To. Open. The. Chamber".

"Lotts, listen to me, please. Open it, for me. I promise I will stop the pain. Just... please". Natalia looked at Hyde towering over her, and for a second saw Jekyll in his face. She saw the man who took her in and accepted her when nobody would. She saw her hero. With a timid hand she placed her hand on the chamber and then collapsed again to the floor.

"Take the pain away Dance", she wheezed, holding her head. "I did it, now take it away, please".

"But, why should I?" Dance chuckled. "Why should I? You betrayed me, I have the right mind to shoot you both now and take Lottie".

"You wouldn't".

"Oh sweetie", he murmured with a maleficent look in his eye. Kneeling down next to her he lifted her chin up to his face and dug his fingernails into her skin. "I really would". She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as the real Amortidor monster rose from its hollow.

"Lottie, my dear", Dance started. "I have released you from your prison that this woman put you in". The Amortidor had the same appearance as Lottie, cascading dark hair and skin the colour of milky coffee, but seemed different to her at the same time. She blinked at the man in front of her then looked towards Lottie who was silently howling.

"Mama?" she said in a tiny voice.

"She put in here, she drove you away from a life you could have had. I can help, you can be part of something more than this".

"Mama... put me in here?"

"Yes", he whispered, looking to Natalia with a devious glare. "Yes she did".

"Dance, you don't get it. That's not Lottie, that's the Amortidor. Lottie's at your feet, she's been here all along", Hyde interrupted gesturing to Natalia/Lottie lying on the floor.

"Don't you think I knew that? I never wanted her. She was weak, couldn't even handle her own powers, but this one", he cooed, twirling the Amortidor's hair. "This one will be the key to my success".

"Mama!" It shouted in anger. "Mama, you left me!"

"I didn't, I really didn't", Lottie whispered, tears starting to form in her eyes. The memories came flooding back and they were as painful as the pounding in her head. The Amortidor's eyes boiled red as rubies and from her hands came some sort of energy.

"What's happening? Lotts?" Hyde asked, falling to her side to help her. "What's she going to do?"

"Tick, tick, tick, boom", Dance whispered with a smile.