"…Now this is a real game."
The words barely left Elric's mouth before everything sped up.
Rain streaked sideways as they burst out onto a main transit lane vehicles screaming past in tight, impossible lines of motion. Neon reflections blurred into long ribbons of color.
"Move!" Lyra snapped, grabbing Elric's sleeve and yanking him forward.
"Already moving!" he shot back, nearly slipping as his foot hit slick pavement
but instead of falling, he stumbled forward faster, dodging a passing hovercar by inches.
"…Yep. Still lucky."
Behind them
The agents didn't run.
They glided.
Not touching the ground for more than a fraction of a second at a time, like the rules didn't quite apply to them.
Kaida-9 glanced back, voice low. "They are adapting. Speed increasing."
Pix whooped, sprinting alongside a moving truck and hopping onto it. "Ohhh this is a chase scene! I love chase scenes!"
Mii leapt after her, spinning mid-air and landing dramatically. "Player! Get up here! Elevated route better camera angle!"
Elric blinked. "…Camera right. Yeah. Sure."
He jumped
Missed
His foot clipped the edge
And instead of falling, he bounced off the side of the truck, flipping awkwardly
and landed perfectly on top.
He froze.
"…I meant to do that."
Lyra landed beside him with far less chaos. "Focus."
Kaida-9 vaulted up in a single heavy motion, denting the roof slightly on impact.
Sera appeared last no wasted movement, no sound.
Elen simply stepped up.
No jump.
No effort.
Just… there.
Elric stared at her.
"…Okay, I'm gonna question that later."
The truck surged forward, merging into traffic.
Below them, the city roared lights, movement, noise, everything blending into a living machine.
Behind them...
The agents followed.
Running along walls.
Leaping between vehicles.
One of them landed on a nearby car, then stepped into the air for a fraction of a second
Correcting trajectory.
Elric pointed. "…Yeah, that's cheating."
Sera's voice was tight. "…They're rewriting movement probabilities."
Pix cackled. "Then break it harder!"
One of the agents raised a hand.
The air bent.
A nearby vehicle swerved
Not randomly.
Directed.
Straight toward them.
Lyra reacted instantly. "Incoming!"
Kaida-9 braced.
Mii screamed, "DRAMATIC COLLISION!"
Elric slipped.
Again.
Of course.
His foot hit a loose panel on the truck
It snapped upward
Launching him forward
Straight into the incoming vehicle
"…Wait...WAIT..."
He hit the hood
Rolled
Slid
and slammed into the windshield
Which cracked
Then bounced him upward
Spinning
And he landed back on the truck.
Silence.
Everyone stared at him.
Elric blinked.
"…Okay," he said. "…that one felt personal."
Pix lost it. "YOU BOUNCED OFF A CAR!"
Mii clapped wildly. "TEN OUT OF TEN! PERFECT EXECUTION!"
Kaida-9 stared. "…You are… not normal."
Lyra didn't laugh.
Didn't react.
Her eyes were on the agents.
"…They're adjusting faster now."
The lead agent moved differently.
More precise.
More direct.
It stepped...
And suddenly it was closer than it should be.
Sera's voice dropped.
"…It's focusing on him."
Elen's hand tightened slightly on Elric's sleeve.
"…Of course it is."
The agent raised its hand again.
This time...
Everything slowed.
Not visually.
Not completely.
Just enough.
Rain hung in the air a fraction longer.
Vehicles drifted slightly off rhythm.
Elric's breath caught.
"…Whoa."
The agent spoke directly into his mind again.
"Your variance is unacceptable."
Elric tilted his head.
"…My what?"
"You disrupt system stability."
A pause.
"You will be corrected."
Something in Elric shifted.
Not physically.
Not visibly.
But internally...
Like a switch flipped.
"…Nah," he said simply.
He stepped forward.
Slipped...
But didn't fall.
Didn't stumble.
Just… corrected.
Naturally.
Like the world adjusted with him.
"…I think I'm gonna keep playing."
The agent moved.
So did Elric.
At the same time.
The agent reached for him
And a loose cable snapped from above
Falling
Wrapping around the agent's arm
Just enough to slow it.
Elric stepped sideways
Perfectly timed
Avoiding the grab.
Sera's eyes widened.
"…He's not reacting anymore."
Pix grinned like a maniac. "HE'S DOING IT ON PURPOSE NOW!"
Lyra's voice was quiet.
"…No."
A beat.
"…The world is."
Kaida-9 charged, capitalizing on the opening.
Her fist connected.
This time...
The agent didn't fully evade.
It staggered.
Just slightly.
Mii followed up with a spinning blast. "Combo attack!"
The agent flickered.
Glitched.
Stabilized...
But slower again.
The truck veered suddenly.
Driver panicking.
Too many impacts.
Too much chaos.
"Brace!" Lyra snapped.
Elric blinked. "…Oh, this is gonna..."
The truck slammed sideways into a barrier
Flipped...
Metal screamed...
Momentum shattered
Everything went airborne
Elric flew.
Weightless.
Rain spinning around him.
Neon lights stretching into impossible shapes.
"…Okay," he muttered. "…this might hurt."
He hit...
A sign...
Bounced...
Rolled...
Slid across wet pavement...
...and stopped.
Flat on his back.
Rain hitting his face.
A beat.
"…I'm alive."
Pix's voice from somewhere nearby: "OF COURSE YOU ARE!"
Mii groaned dramatically. "Player! That landing was only a seven!"
Kaida-9 landed heavily nearby, already standing.
Lyra rolled to her feet instantly.
Sera stepped out of the wreckage like nothing happened.
Elen… was already beside him.
"…You're fine," she said softly.
Elric looked up at her.
"…Yeah."
Behind them...
The agents landed.
Perfectly.
Unaffected.
Still coming.
Lyra stepped forward.
Blocking the path.
Her voice changed.
Colder.
Sharper.
More… official.
"…Enough."
Everyone paused.
Even the agents.
Elric blinked.
"…Uh. That sounded important."
Lyra didn't look at him.
"…You weren't supposed to escalate this far."
Pix tilted her head. "…Wait."
Mii blinked. "…What?"
Kaida-9's stance shifted.
"…Explain."
Sera's eyes narrowed.
"…There it is."
Lyra exhaled slowly.
Then...
"…I was assigned to monitor you."
Silence.
Rain.
Neon.
Everything holding still for a moment.
Elric pushed himself up slightly.
"…Monitor?"
Lyra finally looked at him.
"…You were never random."
A beat.
"…And now you're a problem."
Behind her...
The agents stepped forward again.
Elric blinked.
Then smiled.
"…Okay," he said.
"…Now it's getting interesting."