Gabriel raises his weapon, ready to shoot the closest man. But before he can fire, a shout rings out to his left:
— Hey you! Hands up!
A fourth accomplice, standing guard, has spotted him and aims at him. Gabriel freezes, cursing his recklessness.
— We've got a visitor! the guard yells.
Instantly, the two bomb planters draw their weapons and aim at Gabriel. Lucien turns around, surprised.
Seeing Gabriel's filthy, blood-streaked face below, he recoils slightly. Then he bursts into incredulous laughter.
— Inspector Moreau… You're persistent!
His voice carries over the deafening hum. Gabriel, hands raised, clenches his teeth as he finally sees his enemy's face: a still-young man, gaunt features, eyes blazing with fanaticism.
— Drop your weapon, orders one of the henchmen.
Gabriel has no choice. He sets his revolver down on the metal grating.
— Lucien Tazenec, I presume? he shouts over the sirens.
Lucien tilts his head with a smirk.
— Indeed. You've arrived just in time for the grand finale, Inspector.
He draws a pistol from his belt and steps down toward Gabriel.
— I must say, I almost admire your perseverance. Pity it ends here.
From the corner of his eye, Gabriel sees one of the men moving in to restrain him. He has to try something.
— We'll see about that! he suddenly shouts.
With a kick, he sends the revolver sliding across the grating until it strikes one of the bomb planters' ankles. The man glances down reflexively.
Gabriel dives sideways, rolling across the platform. A shot cracks—Lucien fires but misses his moving target.
In the chaos, Gabriel grabs a forgotten tool—a wrench—and hurls it with all his strength at one of the saboteurs. It slams into the man's arm, forcing him to drop his weapon with a curse.
Gabriel springs up and charges the second armed man. The man fires, grazing Gabriel's hip—white-hot pain flashes through him, but he ignores it. He crashes into the attacker and they slam against the railing.
A brutal blow to the back of his head from a gun butt stuns him—the fourth accomplice has struck him. Gabriel drops to his knees, vision blurred.
Lucien descends calmly the rest of the steps, gun aimed at the inspector.
— It's over, Moreau, he says coldly.
Two men pin Gabriel's arms. The third retrieves his weapon, grimacing.
— Bring him here.
They drag Gabriel to the center of the platform. Below, in the control room, Nadia and the others still hold their hostages, unaware of the fight above due to the roar of the reactor.
Lucien steps within a meter of Gabriel, towering over him. He removes his mask, fully revealing a face ravaged by dark circles and hatred.
— You just couldn't die last night, could you? You had to hang on…
His voice cracks briefly. Gabriel glimpses, beneath the rage, immense exhaustion.
— My hatred is all I have left! Lucien suddenly roars, as if reading his thoughts. You know nothing about me, Inspector.
— I know about your family, Gabriel says. I know what they did to you.
Lucien stiffens.
— Do you know what was left of my little Anaïs? he spits. Her tiny body irradiated, skin burned, unrecognizable… She was seven! And all Rochefort did was lie to the world and paint me as a madman!
His voice breaks.
— I'm sorry, Gabriel says sincerely.
Lucien's eyes blaze.
— You're sorry? he laughs wildly. Look down there, Inspector. Look at her.
He gestures toward Rochefort, still kneeling.
— She hasn't a shred of remorse. Predators like her understand only one thing: the end.
He cocks his pistol and presses it to Gabriel's forehead.
— This city is a cancer, Moreau. I'm going to rip it out, whatever the cost.
Gabriel meets the barrel without flinching.
— What would Anaïs and your wife say about this? he whispers. Would they be proud of what you've become?
Lucien flinches as if struck. The reactor roars at maximum output. His finger trembles on the trigger.
— My feelings no longer matter, he murmurs. The world will be purged.
Gabriel closes his eyes, expecting the shot.
— Lucien! a female voice screams from below.
Nadia stands in the control room, mask removed, a gun pressed to Rochefort's temple.
— Lucien, we have a problem!
The accomplices turn toward her. Lucien keeps Gabriel in his sights.
— What now?
— She has to disable the reactor's safety lock! Nadia improvises. The emergency protocol is shutting it down—if she doesn't enter her code!
Lucien hesitates.
— Fine. Bring her up!
As Nadia ascends with Rochefort, Gabriel seizes the moment. He drives an elbow into the man holding his right arm, twists his wrist, and disarms him. A shot rings out—Lucien fires, striking Gabriel in the shoulder. He cries out and drops the weapon.
Another gunshot explodes from below—an engineer has grabbed a fallen pistol and shoots one of the terrorists in the leg.
Chaos erupts.
Lucien turns and fires at Rochefort—but Nadia shoves her aside. The bullet grazes Rochefort's thigh.
— What are you doing?! Lucien screams.
— I can't let you do this! Nadia cries, tears streaming. It's gone too far!
Lucien, enraged, aims at Nadia.
But Gabriel, despite the searing pain, snatches a pistol from the wounded saboteur and fires three times at Lucien.
Hit in the chest, Lucien staggers backward over the railing, barely catching himself with one hand.
Gabriel lunges and grabs his wrist before he plunges into the blazing reactor core below.
Lucien dangles over the incandescent abyss, blue energy radiating beneath him.
— Let me go… he rasps. End it…
— No! You'll answer for your crimes in court!
Nadia joins Gabriel, grabbing Lucien's other arm. Together, they begin pulling him up.
Lucien looks at Nadia. Infinite sorrow flickers in his eyes.
— You too… betrayed me…
— Lucien… forgive me…
A resigned smile crosses his lips.
— Then it's over.
Suddenly, he lets go and pushes them away.
— No! Gabriel shouts.
Lucien falls into the blinding light of the reactor shaft, swallowed by the blazing core. His final scream is lost in the nuclear roar.
Silence hangs for a moment.
Then alarms blare violently.
— The reactor! Rochefort gasps. It has to be shut down, or it'll go into meltdown!