The Last Plan

Morning arrived.

Nobody noticed.

Underground tunnels made time meaningless.

The industrial complex remained dark.

Cold.

Silent.

The only sounds came from tools.

Metal.

Footsteps.

People trying very hard not to think.

Xin had not slept.

Again.

He sat where Tara last saw him.

Still holding the necklace.

Still staring at nothing.

Inside the main room.

Everyone gathered again.

Tara stood near the table.

Maps covered everything.

Veykar.

Facility Zero.

Black Bloom spread patterns.

Anti Spinat supplies.

Routes.

Probabilities.

All bad.

Clara looked worse.

Her body flickered more often now.

The darkness covering her sometimes became transparent.

Sia noticed.

"You look terrible."

Clara answered calmly.

"I am."

Nobody laughed.

Rion finally broke the silence.

"Tell us everything."

Clara nodded slowly.

Then pointed toward Facility Zero.

"Andy is changing faster."

Everyone already knew.

She continued anyway.

"The Black Bloom is no longer spreading randomly."

Tara frowned.

"What do you mean."

Clara pointed directly beneath Facility Zero.

"It is growing toward something."

Silence.

Rion crossed his arms.

"What."

Clara answered.

"A core."

Nobody understood.

So Clara explained.

"The Bloom behaves like a nervous system."

"It spreads."

"It learns."

"It adapts."

"It connects."

Her voice lowered slightly.

"And Andy is becoming the center."

Silence.

Dren quietly asked:

"So."

"If he finishes."

Clara looked directly at him.

"Then Black Bloom becomes permanent."

Nobody spoke.

Tara leaned forward.

"So we kill him first."

"Yes."

"How."

Clara looked toward Anti Spinat containers.

"The same answer."

"Again."

Dren looked frustrated.

"We already tried injections."

"Not enough," Clara answered.

"We weaken regeneration."

"We isolate him."

"We inject continuously."

Rion frowned.

"How much."

Clara answered:

"Everything."

Tara immediately started planning.

"We divide roles."

She pointed around.

"Rion."

"Combat support."

Rion nodded.

"Tara."

"Delivery systems."

She pointed at explosives.

"Anti Spinat missiles."

"Anti Spinat rounds."

"Anti Spinat traps."

Dren looked confused.

"We can even do that."

Tara looked at him.

"We are going to."

Then Tara looked toward Xin.

Who still had not moved.

"Xin."

Nothing.

"Xin."

Slowly.

He looked up.

Tara spoke carefully.

"You finish him."

Nobody argued.

Nobody needed to.

Later.

Xin walked alone again.

Outside.

Dead forest.

Cold air.

Black Bloom far away.

The necklace remained in his hand.

He remembered Kaila.

Her smile.

Her helping him.

Her saying:

If I ever disappear... return the favor.

He remembered Orion.

Alaric.

Everyone.

He sat down quietly.

Then someone approached.

Rion.

Rion sat beside him.

Neither spoke.

Eventually Rion asked:

"You afraid."

Xin answered honestly.

"Yeah."

Silence.

Then:

"You."

Rion nodded.

"Very."

Xin laughed quietly.

First time in a while.

Very small.

Rion looked toward distant Veykar.

"You know."

"What."

"I think Orion would've punched us if we gave up."

Xin looked down.

"Yeah."

Silence.

Then Xin quietly spoke.

"I don't wanna lose more people."

Rion answered immediately.

"Then don't."

Later.

Night.

Everyone prepared.

Weapons modified.

Anti Spinat loaded.

Explosives prepared.

Vehicles repaired.

Nobody said it.

But everyone understood.

This was probably it.

Far away.

Inside Facility Zero.

Andy stood motionless.

Black Bloom covered entire districts now.

His body looked larger.

Different.

Tentacles moved slowly.

He touched fragments embedded within his chest.

Kaila.

Still there.

Still fused.

Still trapped.

Andy quietly whispered:

"Why won't it stop hurting."

Then.

He looked toward the horizon.

And smiled again.

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