The moment it moved—
Reality flinched.
No wind.
No shockwave.
No sound.
Just—
Absence.
Danny barely reacted in time.
A thin line passed where his shoulder had been And the space behind him Vanished.
Not destroyed.
Not broken.
Gone.
"…WHAT WAS THAT?!" Danny shouted, stumbling back.
Abby was already in motion.
Her crimson aura exploded outward, slamming into the unit with everything she had.
BOOM.
The street cracked.
Buildings trembled.
Dust scattered—
But the unit—
Didn't move.
Not even an inch.
Ren's expression hardened instantly.
"…Yeah. That's not normal."
The unit tilted its head slightly.
"—Interference—Detected—"
Its gaze shifted—
From Danny—
To Abby.
"—Secondary Obstacle—"
Abby's eyes narrowed.
"Try me."
She moved again—
Faster than before—
Crimson energy condensing into a single point—
A direct strike.
BOOM.
This time—
The unit reacted.
Not by blocking.
Not by dodging.
By erasing.
The moment Abby's attack made contact—
It disappeared.
Not deflected.
Not absorbed.
Removed.
Abby's eyes widened.
"…It erased my attack…?"
Ren stepped forward.
"…That's not just power."
A pause.
"That's authority over existence."
Danny's chest tightened.
"…Just like mine…?"
Ren didn't look at him.
"No."
A pause.
"More precise."
The unit raised its hand again.
The air warped—
That same thin line forming—
Danny reacted instantly this time.
"…Not happening!"
His distortion surged—
Stronger—
Sharper—
He grabbed the space in front of him—
And forced it—
To stop.
The line—
Paused.
Mid-formation.
Abby's eyes widened.
"…He stopped it—!"
Ren smirked slightly.
"Now that's more like it."
Danny clenched his teeth.
"…You don't get to just delete things!"
The unit remained still.
Then—
"—Resistance—Confirmed—"
A pause.
"—Escalating—"
The air collapsed.
Not outward—
Inward.
Danny's eyes widened.
"…What now—?!"
The space around them began to compress.
Not crushing—
Condensing.
Like everything was being pulled into a single point.
Abby reacted instantly.
"Move!"
She grabbed Danny—
Jumping back—
But the pull followed.
Unavoidable.
Unstoppable.
Ren planted his foot.
"…Yeah, no."
He raised his hand—
And the space snapped.
CRACK.
For a moment—
The compression stopped.
Danny blinked.
"…You can counter it too?!"
Ren smirked faintly.
"Told you."
A pause.
"I've been doing this longer."
The unit looked at him.
For the first time—
Fully.
"—Additional Anomaly—"
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"…Wow. I feel special."
The unit didn't react.
"—Reclassification—Required—"
Abby stepped forward again.
"Danny!"
He looked at her.
"You're the only one it's targeting as a priority."
A pause.
"Which means—"
Danny nodded slightly.
"…I need to finish this."
The unit raised both hands now.
The air around them fractured—
Multiple lines forming—
Each one—
Capable of erasing anything they touched.
Danny's heart pounded.
"…Okay… that's bad…"
Ren exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah."
A pause.
"That's very bad."
Abby's aura flared to its peak.
"We don't let those hit."
Danny stepped forward.
Not back.
Forward.
"…No."
Both of them glanced at him.
"…We don't dodge."
A pause.
"We overwrite it."
Silence.
Ren's smile returned.
Slowly.
"…Now you're thinking."
The unit moved.
The lines fired.
Everything—
Happened at once.
Danny's distortion exploded outward—
For the first time—
Fully.
Not just around him.
Around everything.
The lines—
Stopped.
Not frozen.
Denied.
Danny's eyes sharpened.
"…You don't get to decide what exists."
The air trembled.
The system—
Reacted.
The unit paused.
For the first time—
Something like delay.
Abby whispered.
"…He's pushing back against it…"
Ren chuckled softly.
"…He's not pushing."
A pause.
"He's rewriting."
Danny stepped forward again.
The space bending with him—
Following him—
Listening.
"…Close."
The unit's body flickered.
The lines collapsed.
Its form destabilized—
For the first time—
It was losing control.
"—Error—"
Danny clenched his fist.
"—System Conflict—"
The air cracked.
Everything trembled—
And then—
The unit looked at him.
Directly.
And for the first time—
Its voice changed.
Less mechanical.
More… aware.
"…You… shouldn't be able to do this…"
Danny didn't hesitate.
"Too bad."
The distortion surged—
The unit's body—
Cracked.
Light leaking through its form—
It began to collapse—
But then—
Everything stopped.
Again.
Not Danny.
Not the unit.
Something else.
Above them—
The sky shifted.
That presence—
Returned.
Stronger.
Closer.
And this time—
It spoke again.
"—Override—Denied—"
Danny's eyes widened.
"…No—"
The unit stabilized instantly.
Its form repaired.
Perfect again.
"—Correction Priority Increased—"
Ren's expression darkened.
"…Yeah."
A pause.
"Now we're in trouble."
Abby stepped forward again.
"Danny—this isn't something you can handle alone."
Danny didn't respond.
Because he understood something now.
This wasn't just a fight.
This was a conflict—
Between him—
And the system itself.
And right now—
The system—
Wasn't losing.
To Be Continued.