The End of the Dark Plan

Chapter 26: The End of the Dark Plan

Camille felt as if she had fallen into an abyss after reading the note. Accepting Luca’s betrayal was like setting fire to a city she had built with her own hands. The walls of trust within her had crumbled one by one, leaving behind only ashes. For the first time, she questioned whether the cause she had fought for truly belonged to her. Was she leading people to salvation, or had she simply paved the way for an even greater catastrophe? Everything she had once believed in felt as if it had collapsed. Luca had gained her trust, only to discard it without hesitation, betraying her without a second thought. A storm of emotions raged within her—anger, pain, disappointment… But above all, there was the deep, unrelenting sting of betrayal.

When she heard Selena’s approaching footsteps, the emptiness inside her did not wane. Selena placed a hand on her shoulder and stood silently by her side. Camille kept her gaze fixed on the ground for a few moments, saying nothing. There was still that void in her eyes, but Selena’s presence offered a sliver of comfort.

“I’m here for you,” Selena said, her voice cold yet steady.

Camille lifted her head, meeting Selena’s gaze. In that fleeting moment, everything seemed to shift. Selena had shown her—she was not alone.

“Thank you,” Camille murmured, but her voice was distant, as if she had buried her emotions deep within. “But right now, I have something I must do.”

Selena nodded, watching over her as Camille stepped away, moving toward the battlefield. Everything she had once placed her trust in had crumbled into ruins. After the war with Magnus, for those who survived, victory was the only option. But Camille felt as if she were fighting this battle alone.

The battlefield was in utter chaos. Dr. Malvyn Quirke’s bio-mutants had grown even more powerful, even more destructive. Aldric and Valen fought desperately against the monstrous form Quirke had transformed into, giving their all just to stay alive. And amidst the war’s darkest moments, Camille—despite the weight of betrayal crushing her—stepped forward to lead. There was no other choice.

She moved swiftly, cutting down the bio-mutants surrounding Valen. The battlefield echoed with screams. The scent of gunpowder hung thick in the air, blood seeping into the soil. Every step she took was over a fallen body. The bio-mutants roared, their frenzied cries like the pounding of war drums. Camille knew she could not stop, not even for a second. If she did, the weight of her emotions would swallow her whole. Every heartbeat rang louder, her body bearing the pain of battle, yet her eyes burned with unshakable resolve. This was not just her fight—it was the fight that would determine the fate of an entire people.

She had to win.

Finally, Camille devised a strategy. Against the shapeshifting, monstrous abominations before her, there was no room for emotion. She had to become the leader they needed—ruthless, calculated. No matter how much it hurt, she had to fight this war with logic alone.

As Aldric and Valen fought on, their unwavering resilience reminded Camille that she could not falter. At last, she made her move, leading a strategic assault against Quirke’s bio-mutants.

As her forces advanced, Dr. Malvyn Quirke and his monstrous creations were forced into retreat. His mutated form struggled to regenerate. The mutation was incomplete—its healing was too slow. One by one, the smaller mutants were eradicated, leaving Quirke alone. For the first time, desperation flickered in his monstrous eyes. Camille seized the moment.

"Attack!" she commanded.

Soldiers surged forward, blasting away the remaining mutants while the bulk of their forces closed in on Quirke. They struck relentlessly, never giving him a moment to heal. Slowly, his limbs were torn apart. His regeneration failed.

General Caelus prepared to strike the killing blow when, suddenly, he roared, “DIE, TRAITOR!” and turned his blade toward Valen Oryn.

Before the attack could land, Aldric intercepted it, driving his sword deep into Caelus’s chest.

“The real traitor,” Aldric whispered, twisting the blade, “is the one who sees the land and its people as nothing but pawns… who slaughters the innocent without a second thought.”

Caelus choked on his own screams, gasping for breath, but he was already dying. Slowly, painfully, his body collapsed lifelessly onto the blood-soaked earth.

As Aldric executed the general, Valen delivered the final blow to Quirke. The battlefield erupted in victory. Against Magnus, this was nothing short of a revolution.

From this moment forward, it was the beginning of the end for Magnus and his followers.

And Camille… even in the depths of darkness, she was the lone beacon of hope, emerging victorious.

Magnus’s army was no more. His supporters had either perished or surrendered, begging for mercy. At last, Camille stood among her people, realizing that what had kept them alive throughout this journey was not just hope—but sheer, unyielding determination.

The war was over. And with it, a painful yet undeniable rebirth.

Yet Magnus and Luca were nowhere to be found.

The others rejoiced, drowning in the euphoria of victory. Soldiers scoured the battlefield, searching for any remaining mutants, ensuring Magnus was truly defeated.

But Camille felt a sudden, chilling clarity.

Something was wrong.

Without a word, she turned and ran, her breath ragged, her body drained from the brutal fight. Yet she pushed forward.

Miles away, Magnus stood in the heart of his corporation’s headquarters, waiting. A sound echoed through the silence.

He reached for the unfinished Immortality Stone and activated it.

The sensation was intoxicating—similar to Chronotoxin, but far more potent. Then, the pain struck. His body convulsed as raw energy surged through his veins like fire. For a moment, he felt like a god.

But even gods could hear the whisper of death.

Now, Magnus was beyond that. He had become something else.

His body rebelled against itself. A war raged within his very cells. His humanity resisted, but the stone’s dark will was stronger. The hunger—the monstrous, insatiable hunger—began to consume him.

He fought to maintain control. But he failed.

The stone's will overpowered his own. He no longer sought power. He sought to devour.

Even from the upper floors of the building, he saw Luca—no, he sensed him. It was as if his eyes could pierce through walls.

Magnus extended his arm.

In a single, nightmarish motion, he plunged his hand through the ceiling, grasping Luca’s leg and hurling him across the room.

Luca barely had time to react before he was sent flying, the air forced from his lungs.

Magnus was no longer a man. He was destruction incarnate.

Luca’s carefully laid plans to ambush him were now meaningless. And yet, as he soared through the air, adrenaline pumping through his veins, he did something unexpected.

He laughed.

A mad, exhilarated, unstoppable laughter.

The war had been won. The people had secured their victory.

But the true battle—the battle that would decide everything—was about to begin.

And no one was there to see it.