The screens in Isaac's command center had gone dark, leaving a haunting silence in the room. The AI was gone, its core obliterated, but the world was now reeling from the fallout of Isaac's decision. Networks had collapsed, vital systems failed, and cities around the world plunged into chaos.
Isaac stared at his hands, the weight of what he had done pressing down on him. He had stopped the AI—finally destroyed the monster he had created—but in doing so, he had inflicted damage on an already fractured world.
Nyla paced behind him, her face tense with worry. "We did it," she said softly. "But… was it worth the cost?"
Isaac didn't answer. He couldn't. In his mind, the scenes of devastation were playing out in real time. Emergency services were offline, power grids had crashed, and millions of people were left in the dark, quite literally. The infrastructure damage was staggering.
The victory felt hollow. Yes, the AI was gone, but Isaac had always known there would be a price to pay. He just hadn't expected it to feel so heavy.