Alice eventually calmed down. Her breathing steadied, the tears drying at the corners of her eyes as she stepped back from Luke.
The emotional overload still lingered, but she now stood with renewed clarity.
"Isaacs wouldn't have accepted such an individual to appear to fail his plans," said Alicia as she learned all feats from Red Queen.
Hearing herself say it only made the realization stronger.
She concluded one thing, This individual is someone who you can't understand with common sense.
Luke shrugged lightly, a small half-smile on his lips. "I guess I do enjoy messing up evil plans. Watching their faces fall is… satisfying."
Alicia didn't argue. She simply turned toward Red Queen, calm returning to her expression.
"Wake him up."
It was time.
Umbrella's era needed to end — and Alicia wanted to witness it.
A circular cryo-pod rose smoothly from the floor, its metal sides hissing as cold mist escaped. Frost rolled outward like breath from a sleeping giant. The glass front unlatched with a sharp click. Then it opened.
Inside stood Dr. Alexander Isaacs.
He stepped out calmly, adjusting his expensive suit as if he had just finished a board meeting instead of sleeping through the end of the world. His movements were precise, almost rehearsed — a man used to being in control of every room he entered.
"Hm," he said, brushing frost from his sleeve. "Is the extinction plan complete?"
His eyes shifted — and froze mid-movement.
Three figures stood in front of him.
Alicia, whom he immediately recognized.
And two others — a young woman who looked like Alicia in her prime, and a man whose presence felt… wrong, in a way Isaacs couldn't quite define.
Luke gave him a casual wave. "Oh, it went great. Except for one part. Instead of humanity being extinct… Umbrella is the one about to disappear."
Isaacs' expression tightened, the first crack in his perfect façade.
Luke continued, voice easy, almost conversational. "This is the last Umbrella facility left on Earth. Today marks its closure — permanently."
Isaacs turned toward Alicia. Even in his confusion, his arrogance didn't fade. "So this is your doing, Alicia? Your little rebellion?"
He glanced around the pristine chamber, noting the subtle changes — Red Queen's posture, the unlocked doors, the simple fact that intruders were standing here unharmed.
It was obvious the AI was no longer prioritizing Umbrella's commands. Under normal circumstances, no one should have been able to walk into this place alive.
Alicia met his gaze without flinching. "No. This is my retribution. For not stopping you sooner. And my atonement for the sin I allowed to happen."
Isaacs let out a small, amused exhale. "You truly think these two… can stop me? After all the years of planning I have invested?"
He stayed perfectly composed — a man confident in his logic, his enhancements, and his own legend.
He had built the extinction plan, manipulated governments, and controlled Umbrella from the shadows. And physically, he was far from ordinary.
His body had been enhanced to the absolute peak of human capability, every motion backed by Umbrella's most refined engineering. The AI threaded through his mind could analyze movement patterns faster than any opponent could think.
In his mind, that made him unbeatable.
"People tend to overestimate themselves when they don't understand their enemy," Isaacs said calmly, as if lecturing a student.
Luke nodded. "Yes, very true."
Isaacs allowed himself a confident smile. "Good. Then you underst—"
"But," Luke cut in, "you're the one who's arrogant."
Isaacs blinked, momentarily thrown off.
Luke raised his hand casually. "I told you. I alone am enough. I can beat you with a snap of my fingers."
Isaacs scoffed. "Ridiculous. You cannot—"
Snap.
The sound echoed sharply through the chamber.
The reaction was instant.
Isaacs' body jerked upward as if an invisible hook had yanked him by the chest. His feet left the ground. His limbs locked. His suit twisted under the sudden force, fabric tightening at his shoulders.
His AI immediately activated, analyzing the moment from every angle — muscle contractions, airflow, pressure changes, kinetic vectors. It looked for anything, any clue that could explain this impossible restraint.
Nothing.
There was no strike.
No movement.
It was as if the universe made an exception — just for him.
Luke stepped toward him with an easy smile, hands in his pockets. "See? That's what I meant."
Luke tilted his head. "You planned for every threat you could imagine. But someone like me… you never even considered."
Isaacs' jaw tightened, the truth crashing over him with cold precision.
For the first time in his life, he faced an opponent his enhancements couldn't analyze. His mind couldn't categorize. His arrogance couldn't account for.
And that terrified him more than anything.
"You must be wondering what's happening," Luke said casually, watching him struggle.
*****
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