The light didn't flare this time.
It settled.
Low. Controlled. Watching.
That was worse.
Dante felt it immediately the difference. Before, the system had pushed, pulled, reacted. Now it was… choosing.
Adapting.
Patient.
"…Now I understand."
The voice wasn't layered anymore. Not fractured.
Singular.
Focused.
On them.
Victor's voice hit through the walls, distorted but urgent. "Dante! It just locked the whole structure there's no exit point none!"
Dante didn't look away from the core.
"I figured."
The girl shifted slightly in his hold, her breathing still uneven but steadier than before. "It's not trying to rush anymore."
"No," Dante said.
"Because it doesn't need to."
The space tightened not physically, but in presence. Like everything around them had leaned in, attention narrowed to a single outcome.
"…Two variables. Stable through convergence."
Dante let out a quiet breath. "You keep using that word like we're going to agree to it."
"…Agreement is unnecessary."
