Marcus did not wait for the corridor to close in again.
The moment the scraping stopped and the silence settled, he understood what had changed. The anomaly was no longer reacting blindly. It was waiting for them to act.
That meant it was still predicting them.
Marcus lowered his rifle slightly, just enough to shift his posture.
Maya noticed immediately. "What are you doing?" Maya asked.
Marcus did not look at her. "I am done reacting," Marcus said.
Elias blinked, still catching his breath. "That is a terrible time to try something new," Elias said.
Marcus stepped sideways.
Not forward.
Not back.
Sideways.
The corridor hesitated.
It was subtle, but all three of them felt it.
The wall behind them did not snap forward.
The figures ahead did not adjust immediately.
Maya's eyes narrowed. "…It did not respond," Maya said.
Marcus stepped again.
A different direction this time.
No rhythm.
No pattern.
The corridor reacted—
Late.
The wall surged forward, but it missed by nearly a foot.
Elias stared. "It is lagging," Elias said.
Marcus nodded once. "It cannot predict irregular movement fast enough," Marcus said.
Maya's expression sharpened. "You are breaking its model," Maya said.
"Not yet," Marcus replied. "But we are close."
One of the figures lunged.
Too early.
Marcus shifted direction mid-step, and the figure passed through empty space, its form distorting violently before snapping back.
Maya saw it clearly. "It committed to a prediction," Maya said.
"And missed," Marcus said.
Elias let out a breath that almost became a laugh. "That is the first encouraging thing I have seen."
The wall surged again.
This time from the opposite side.
Marcus did not turn.
He moved unpredictably again, stepping forward, then sharply to the right, pulling Maya with him.
The wall collapsed into the space they had just occupied.
Maya caught herself as the floor shifted beneath her. "This is not sustainable," Maya said.
"It does not need to be," Marcus replied.
The figures tried to adjust.
They spread wider.
Then narrower.
Then one moved forward—
Then stopped abruptly, as if it had chosen the wrong moment.
Elias watched them, his breathing still uneven. "It is second-guessing itself," Elias said.
Maya nodded. "Its predictions are conflicting," Maya said.
Marcus did not slow.
"Good," Marcus said.
The corridor began to destabilize.
The walls shifted more aggressively now, but less accurately.
The floor stretched too far in one direction, then snapped back too late.
The lights flickered out of sequence.
The anomaly was still reacting—
But it was no longer precise.
"Do not fall into a pattern," Marcus said.
"I was not planning to," Maya replied, adjusting her movement to match his unpredictable steps.
Elias followed, less coordinated but trying. "I would like it noted that I am not built for this," Elias said.
"Noted," Marcus replied.
Ahead, the exit flickered.
Not visually.
Positionally.
It shifted slightly to the left.
Then back.
Then forward.
Maya saw it immediately. "It is losing stability," Maya said.
Elias shook his head. "Or we are forcing it to recalculate too fast," Elias said.
Marcus adjusted direction again.
"Do not focus on the exit," Marcus said.
Maya nodded. "If we lock onto it, the system will stabilize around that expectation," Maya said.
Elias looked at the floor instead. "I will not look at anything anymore," Elias said.
One of the figures tried again.
It appeared directly in Marcus's path, moving to intercept—
But Marcus stepped sideways at the last second.
The figure overshot.
Its form stretched unnaturally as it tried to correct itself, then snapped back with visible distortion.
Maya exhaled sharply. "It cannot keep up," Maya said.
"Then we do not slow down," Marcus replied.
The wall behind them surged again.
Faster.
Closer.
Elias felt it this time and turned just enough to see the surface collapsing toward them.
"Marcus—!" Elias shouted.
Marcus did not turn.
He changed direction sharply.
The wall missed.
Barely.
Elias stared. "That should have hit us," Elias said.
"It tried to," Marcus replied.
The corridor compressed again.
But unevenly.
One side pushed inward too far.
The other lagged behind.
For the first time—
There was space.
Not stable.
Not safe.
But usable.
Marcus saw it immediately.
"There," Marcus said.
Maya followed his gaze. "That is not going to last," Maya said.
"It does not need to," Marcus replied.
He moved.
Fast.
No hesitation.
Maya followed immediately.
Elias stumbled, then forced himself forward after them.
The figures reacted—
Too late.
The wall surged—
Too late.
The space collapsed behind them—
Too late.
The exit stabilized.
Just for a second.
That was enough.
Marcus reached the threshold first.
He did not slow down.
He crossed.
Maya came through next, catching herself on the frame as the environment snapped back into place around her.
Elias stumbled through last, nearly collapsing as he hit solid ground again.
Behind them—
The corridor snapped.
The distortion vanished instantly.
The hallway returned to normal.
Clean.
Finite.
Contained.
Marcus turned just once.
Inside the chamber—
Everything looked normal.
Except—
For a brief moment—
A figure stood at the far end.
Watching.
Then it was gone.
Marcus stepped back.
"Seal it," Marcus said.