Ashes of Our Flame
by RapwizzyDebaron
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Episode 66: "When the Smoke Rises"
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The underground chamber buzzed with tension. The stranger — who called himself Kyren — leaned against the table as Kara's team processed the revelations from the decrypted data.
Kara stared at the screen, her face pale beneath the flickering glow. The files exposed more than just Dr. Vane's experiments. They unveiled an entire underground network — senators, military generals, and scientists — all puppets in a twisted operation known as Project Dominion.
"This wasn't about Kara," Tessa said quietly, scrolling through the classified documents. "It was never just about her. It was about control."
"Control through fear," Kyren added. "Genetic engineering, memory erasure, behavior manipulation — they were building the perfect weapon. And Kara was just their prototype."
Kara looked away, her chest tightening. "I was never meant to survive."
Adrian touched her shoulder gently. "But you did. And now you're the key to destroying them."
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The Gathering Storm
Kyren pulled up a crude map. "Vane's next move is already in play. He's activating the Omega Protocol."
"What is it?" Ronan asked, arms crossed.
Kyren's voice was hard. "A reset. A mass-triggered neural collapse on every active subject tied to Project Dominion. Anyone enhanced like Kara — anyone who survived a trial — will be wiped or turned into a sleeper weapon."
Tessa's jaw dropped. "That could be hundreds. Maybe thousands."
Adrian looked at Kara. "We need to stop the protocol before it's unleashed."
Kyren nodded. "There's a control tower buried inside the Helix Core. He'll transmit the signal from there."
"That's suicide," Ronan muttered. "Helix Core is a fortress."
Kara stood tall, her voice steady. "Then we bring the fire to the heart of the fortress."
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Meanwhile, Inside Helix Core…
Dr. Vane stood in the cold expanse of the central control room, watching lines of code pour down the screen. Technicians moved like ghosts, typing commands they didn't understand, enslaved to the machine's design.
"The Omega Protocol is 72% loaded," one of them whispered.
Vane's eyes narrowed. "Increase the pace. We don't want our little phoenix burning down the system before we light the match."
He turned to the massive screen — Kara's file open like a shrine. "She always had fire in her. But fire, when untamed, consumes itself."
He smiled, cruel and calm. "Time to teach her who the real god is."
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A Desperate Plan
Back in the safehouse, plans were drawn and roles assigned.
Adrian would lead the infiltration unit through the old maintenance tunnels beneath Helix Core. Ronan and Kyren would provide cover and sabotage external defenses. Tessa, ever the hacker, would tap into the internal comms and blind the surveillance from a rooftop nearby.
And Kara? She would go straight to the top.
"I have to face him," she said. "He built me — now I'll be the one to destroy him."
Adrian's voice was sharp. "We go together—"
"No," she cut in. "He'll expect you. But he'll never expect me to walk through the front door."
There was silence — heavy, aching — before Adrian nodded, reluctantly.
"Then we make sure that when you walk in, the building's already burning."
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Nightfall
As the stars blinked into a smoky sky, the team set out.
Kara stood alone at the gates of the Helix Core, dressed in the black uniform of the original test subjects — no weapons, no comms, only her name and her fury.
The guards hesitated when she stepped into the light. They recognized her. Everyone did. But none of them stopped her.
She was a legend. A ghost. A weapon that had gone rogue.
And now she was walking into the lion's den with fire in her veins.
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Inside the Core
The doors sealed behind her with a hiss. Cold, sterile air brushed her skin. The silence was suffocating.
Then a voice echoed from above.
"Well, well," Vane drawled. "My beautiful disaster returns."
Kara didn't flinch. "I came to end this."
The lights shifted, revealing Vane standing at the end of the corridor, surrounded by steel and glass and lies.
"You should've died in Phase Three," he said. "But I must admit — the fire in you is impressive. Too bad you never learned to control it."
She stepped closer, her voice like steel. "Control is your weakness. Freedom is mine."
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The Fire Awakens
At that moment, explosions rocked the lower levels. Sirens wailed. Vane's smirk vanished as alarms blared across the intercom.
"Infiltration teams detected—sector five breach—external shields collapsing—"
Kara smiled. "Surprise."
Vane's face twisted with fury. "You think this changes anything? You're still mine, Kara. I made you."
She stepped forward, flames dancing in her eyes.
"Then unmake me."
She lunged.
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To be continued…
🔥 The fire is rising. The storm is here. Join Ashes of Our Flame by RapwizzyDebaron as the final reckoning begins. Vote, comment, and follow — the end is near, but the flame has never burned brighter.