What Was Left Behind

Chapter 23: The Last Goodbye

The world around Maia was still crumbling—pieces of the ceiling cracking and falling with deafening crashes, the machine's low, menacing hum vibrating through the floor. But all of it felt distant, a faint murmur beneath the weight crushing her chest. Camilla was gone.

The friend she had fought so hard to save, the girl who had stood by her through everything, was now just a shell, her body overtaken by the monster that was once Maia's father. The betrayal burned in Maia's throat, choking her with every breath. The worst part wasn't just losing Camilla—it was knowing that, deep down, this had all been her fault. She had failed her best friend.

The room shook again as debris rained down around them. Levi groaned, struggling to push himself up from where he had fallen against the wall. Blood streaked his face, his breathing labored, but all Maia could see was Camilla—standing at the center of the room, her body jerking unnaturally, her eyes glowing with that terrifying blue light.

"I'm so sorry, Camilla," Maia whispered, her voice breaking, barely audible over the chaos. Her legs gave out, and she sank to her knees, her heart splintering in her chest. Tears blurred her vision, but she didn't wipe them away. She didn't deserve to stop crying.

"Is this really what you wanted, Dad?" she whispered, her voice trembling, barely holding back the sobs clawing at her throat. "Did you want to take everything from me? Even her?"

Camilla—no, the thing inside her—tilted her head, that grotesque, twisted smile still pulling at her lips. "This was always how it was meant to be," the voice said, so distorted and wrong, using Camilla's mouth but dripping with the malice of her father. "You can't outrun your destiny, Maia. You're part of this. You always were."

Maia's heart shattered. Every word was like a knife twisting in her chest. She had tried to save Camilla, fought to bring her back from this nightmare. But now... now she realized that her fight had only brought her closer to the inevitable. She had been the one to lead Camilla into this.

"I never wanted this!" Maia screamed, her voice raw with pain. "You've ruined everything! You've destroyed us both!"

The words echoed in the cold, dark room, but the figure in front of her—her father using the body of her best friend—only smiled wider, as if the pain he saw on Maia's face brought him joy. "You were never meant to have a life outside of this, Maia. This is your legacy. Our legacy."

Levi staggered to his feet, his voice tight with fury as he stepped in front of Maia, shielding her. "She's not yours anymore. You've taken enough from her."

But Maia barely registered his words. She couldn't tear her eyes away from Camilla, from the face that had been twisted into something monstrous. Tears streamed down her face, her chest heaving with sobs. Camilla's body moved toward her, slow and unnatural, each step a reminder of how far she had fallen from the girl Maia had once known.

"I couldn't save you," Maia whispered, her voice choking on the grief. "I'm so sorry, Camilla. I couldn't save you. And now I've lost you forever."

The figure stopped just inches from Maia, towering over her. For a moment, there was silence, and then Camilla's lips moved—not with the distorted voice of her father, but with something softer, weaker.

"Maia... help me."

The voice was faint, barely there, but it was Camilla. It was really her.

Maia's heart clenched in her chest, a spark of hope flaring in the darkness. She stood slowly, her legs trembling beneath her as she reached out toward her friend. "Camilla? Camilla, is that really you?"