The moment the Core Entity started moving again, the pressure in the arena returned even stronger than before. The frozen energy shattered apart and the attack resumed, forcing everyone to react instantly.
"Move!" David shouted.
They scattered just as the energy crashed down where they had been standing. The impact shook the entire platform, sending cracks across its surface. Dust and fragments rose into the air.
Collin rolled to the side and pushed himself up. "That thing is not slowing down at all!"
Sharon steadied herself, her red aura flaring again, brighter but still unstable. "Good. I don't want it to."
Pearl quickly raised another barrier, though it flickered as soon as it formed. "We need to be careful. It's already stronger than before."
Tobi stood calmly, watching the Core Entity instead of rushing in. "It has already adjusted to our last attack pattern. If we repeat it, we lose."
Desire stepped forward slightly, her eyes fixed on the massive figure ahead. Unlike the others, she showed no sign of panic.
"Then we don't repeat it," she said.
David turned to her. "You said it adapts to everything we do. So how do we beat something like that?"
Desire didn't answer immediately. She studied the Core Entity as it moved again, its massive arm shifting the air itself as it prepared another strike.
"We don't beat it with strength," she said finally. "We beat it with contradiction."
Collin frowned. "That sounds like a complicated way of saying we're in trouble."
Tobi gave a small smile. "No. It means we confuse it."
David understood first. "We give it something it can't process fast enough."
Desire nodded slightly. "Exactly."
The Core Entity attacked again, sending a focused blast toward them. This time, David reacted earlier.
"Split!" he called out.
They moved in different directions. The blast missed most of them, but the shockwave still threw Pearl off balance. Her barrier shattered completely this time.
"I can't hold another direct hit," she said.
"You won't have to," Desire replied.
Everyone looked at her again.
"We attack together," she continued, "but not in sync."
Sharon raised an eyebrow. "That makes no sense."
"It does," Tobi said. "If our attacks don't follow a pattern, it can't adapt properly."
David stepped forward, his glowing arm steady now. "So we keep changing the timing, the direction, everything."
Desire nodded. "And we target different parts of its structure, not just one point."
Collin cracked his knuckles. "Finally, something that sounds like a plan."
The Core Entity paused for a brief second, as if analyzing them again.
Then it moved.
Faster than before.
This time it went straight for Desire.
David reacted instantly, stepping into its path. He raised his hand and pushed against the invisible structure he could now feel clearly.
For a moment, the Core Entity slowed.
Not stopped, but slowed enough.
"Now!" David shouted.
Sharon attacked first, releasing a burst of red energy toward its side. The heat distorted the air around it.
Before the attack fully landed, Collin slammed his foot down, sending a shockwave upward at a different angle.
At the same time, Tobi moved in, his precise energy cutting toward a joint in the entity's structure.
Pearl, though exhausted, focused what little strength she had left into a small barrier that redirected part of the incoming force.
Desire moved last.
She didn't rush.
She simply raised her hand and shifted something unseen.
The Core Entity reacted too late.
The attacks did not hit in one place this time.
They struck different points at different moments.
The system tried to adapt.
It failed.
For the first time, the Core Entity staggered properly.
A visible fracture spread across its chest, deeper than before.
Collin grinned. "Okay, that definitely worked!"
But the moment did not last long.
The Core Entity straightened again, and the fracture began to repair.
Slower this time.
But still repairing.
Tobi noticed immediately. "It's adapting again, but not as fast."
David narrowed his eyes. "That means we're overwhelming it."
Desire spoke quietly. "Not yet. We are only delaying it."
The Core Entity raised its arm again, but this time its movement was slightly off.
Less precise.
It attacked again, but the timing was wrong.
They dodged more easily.
Sharon smirked. "Now it's struggling."
David looked at Desire. "How long can we keep this up?"
She didn't hesitate. "Not long enough."
A brief silence followed as they repositioned themselves.
Then she added, "Unless we push it past its limit."
Collin blinked. "You mean break it completely?"
Desire shook her head slightly. "No. I mean force it to break itself."
That got everyone's attention.
Tobi looked interested now. "Now that is a dangerous idea."
David took a breath and looked at the Core Entity again.
It was already adjusting, already trying to regain control.
"We don't give it time," he said.
Sharon stepped forward, her aura flaring again. "Then we go all in."
Pearl steadied herself. "I'll support as much as I can."
Collin nodded. "Let's finish this."
Tobi smiled faintly. "Now it's getting interesting."
Desire looked at all of them, then back at the Core Entity.
"Next attack," she said calmly, "we don't hold back."
The Core Entity moved again, preparing something even larger than before.
This time, they didn't wait.
They ran toward it together.