The former campers stared at Dorian in horror. They knew what the metal sphere contained, and they did not want to deal with it. The disk Thomas' had given Duncan had shown them exactly what the Reckoning virus would do if unleashed. Dorian picked up on their horror and smiled.
"I see you are already familiar with my ultimate weapon." he said. "Thomas' work no doubt. He was always so resourceful, pity he had to die."
"Shut up you sick bastard!" Duncan shouted. "Thomas was a great man, and you will be lucky to get half the glory he does."
"Ha, my dear boy if this was about glory, I would already have won." said Dorian. " But this is about so much more than glory. It is about retribution. It is about the beauty of watching the world burn, in payment for their sins."
"You talk about this like it's some kind of holy war." said Noah. "But you do not see that what you are doing in no way makes you righteous. You are a greater sinner than anyone here and yet you believe that it is your duty to wipe out sin. But your logic is flawed; you are a living, breathing oxymoron, incapable of seeing that what you are doing is not the work of God. It is the work of a sick, twisted, and cowardly man."
"Perhaps you are right, Noah." Dorian replied. "But keep in mind that it is I who hold the fate of the world in my hands. This virus will wipe out the human race and one false move is all I need to unleash it." He smiled and held the sphere up to Noah's face.
Noah backed away, glaring at Dorian. "Ah, you see the power I hold?" said Dorian. "You step forward to challenge me, and yet you lack the nerve to deal the final blow. Your desire to be a compassionate human overrides your desire to kill, and that is your weakness. You cannot do what is necessary to win."
"Compassion is not our weakness, it is our strength." said Bridgette. "It is what allows us to see the whole picture. Compassion gives us clarity, it gives us unity. While you rely upon blind hatred and violence to achieve your goals, we rely upon kindness and love to achieve ours. We use the weapons of light, and light will always triumph over the dark. Good always defeats evil."
"Ha, so naïve you are Bridgette." said Dorian. "You know nothing of the laws of the cosmic battle. Good may triumph over evil, but good must always make a sacrifice to the darkness. Are you prepared to sacrifice yourself Bridgette? Are you willing to die for the Greater Good?" Bridgette did not answer. "You see, she talks a big game, but she will not back up her words. You have already lost." said Dorian.
"It appears we have reached a stalemate then." said Duncan. "Neither side will back down, but neither side will step up either."
"So you think." said Dorian, with a smile. With that, he signaled his soldiers to attack and the final battle had begun.
A/N: Yeah, I know it's a really short chapter, but it is necessary. What you just read sets up the conclusion of this fic and like I've been promising for weeks it's gonna be good. So stay tuned, there's only three chapters left and then it's time for the sequel!
