The cracks didn't stop.
They multiplied.
One became three.
Three became seven.
And each one—
Led somewhere different.
Danny stood still, eyes scanning everything.
Too many presences.
Too many versions.
"…This is insane…" he muttered.
Abby stepped closer to him.
Not shielding.
Not panicking.
Ready.
"Focus."
A pause.
"Pick the biggest threat first."
Ren exhaled slowly.
"…Good luck with that."
Another crack tore open—
This one larger than the rest.
From it—
A figure stepped out.
Not human.
Not fully.
Its body flickered between forms—
As if it couldn't decide what it was.
Danny's chest tightened.
"…That one feels wrong…"
The other Danny nodded.
"…That's what happens when a version breaks completely."
"…Breaks how?"
A pause.
"…Loses everything."
Silence.
The flickering figure turned—
Its distorted gaze landing directly on Danny.
And then—
It smiled.
Not normal.
Too wide.
Too empty.
"…There you are…"
Danny froze.
"…Why does it sound like me…"
Ren didn't hesitate.
"Because it is you."
The broken version stepped forward—
Its body glitching with every movement.
"…You shouldn't exist…"
Danny clenched his fists.
"…Funny. I was about to say the same thing."
The air snapped.
The broken Danny vanished—
And reappeared right in front of him.
Too fast.
Danny barely reacted—
BOOM.
Abby intercepted—
Crimson energy colliding with the distorted version—
But this time—
It didn't get pushed back.
It didn't move.
Instead—
Abby was the one forced back.
Sliding across the ground.
"…What?!" she shouted.
Ren stepped in immediately—
"…Yeah, that's not good."
He struck—
Space cracking around the broken version—
But again—
No effect.
The attack passed through it—
Like it wasn't fully there.
"…It's phasing…" Ren muttered.
The broken Danny tilted its head.
"…You're all… incomplete…"
Its gaze locked back onto the real Danny.
"…But I'm what happens when you fail."
Danny's chest tightened.
"…I'm not you."
The broken version smiled wider.
"…Not yet."
Another flicker—
Another version stepped out from a nearby crack.
This one calmer.
Colder.
Eyes sharp.
"…Ignore that one," the cold version said.
Everyone froze.
"…You're talking?" Danny asked.
The cold version looked at him.
"…Obviously."
A pause.
"…If we don't cooperate, we all die."
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"…Wow. Straight to the point."
Abby didn't relax.
"Why should we trust you?"
The cold version didn't hesitate.
"You shouldn't."
A pause.
"But you don't have a better option."
Silence.
Danny glanced between them.
One version—
Completely broken.
Another—
Cold and calculating.
"…This is getting complicated…" he muttered.
The original "other Danny" stepped forward again.
"…Listen."
A pause.
"Each of us represents a different outcome."
He pointed slightly—
Toward the broken one.
"That's failure."
Then toward the cold one.
"That's survival."
Then—
He looked at Danny.
"…And you…"
A pause.
"…are the anomaly."
Danny exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah. I've been hearing that a lot."
The broken version laughed.
"…An anomaly… gets erased…"
The cracks pulsed violently.
More figures stepped closer.
Different shapes.
Different energies.
But all—
Focused.
On Danny.
Ren stepped beside him.
"…We've got a problem."
Abby nodded.
"…They're not just here to exist."
The cold version finished it.
"…They're here to decide which version survives."
Silence.
Danny clenched his fists.
"…So it's a battle royale now?"
The broken version tilted its head.
"…No…"
A pause.
"…It's correction."
The sky flickered again.
That presence—
Returning.
Stronger.
Closer.
"—Multiple Anomalies Detected—"
Ren cursed quietly.
"…Of course it noticed…"
The cold version's expression hardened.
"…We're out of time."
Danny looked forward.
At all of them.
Different versions.
Different outcomes.
All leading—
To him.
"…Then we don't fight each other," he said.
A pause.
"…We fight the system."
Silence.
The broken version laughed.
"…You still don't get it…"
The cold version didn't laugh.
"…No."
A pause.
"…He might be right."
Everyone looked at him.
"…If we fight each other…"
A pause.
"…we're just doing exactly what it wants."
Ren smirked slightly.
"…Now that's interesting."
Abby glanced at Danny.
"…Your move."
Danny took a step forward.
Facing all versions of himself.
"…I'm not here to replace you."
A pause.
"…I'm here to end this."
Silence.
The cracks trembled.
The sky pulsed.
And somewhere beyond it—
Something began preparing.
Because this situation—
Was no longer controllable.
Not by the system.
Not by the cycle.
And definitely—
Not by fate.
To Be Continued.