The station trembled.
Not from impact.
From pressure.
The system screens covering the walls flickered violently in deep red light.
[ HIGH-LEVEL IRREGULAR DETECTED ]
[ EXECUTION AUTHORIZED ]
[ ABSOLUTE CORRECTION INITIATED ]
Mira stepped back instinctively.
"…Absolute?"
Noah's expression darkened slightly.
"…That's worse than Prime."
Aarav's eyes narrowed.
"…You sound experienced."
A faint smile appeared on Noah's face.
"…I survived long enough to learn."
The air suddenly tightened.
Hard.
Sharp.
Heavy enough to distort breathing itself.
Then—
The space above the station platform split open.
Not like previous distortions.
Not unstable.
Not chaotic.
Perfectly clean.
"…That's new," Mira whispered.
"…No," Noah replied quietly.
"…That's old."
A figure descended slowly from the opening.
Humanoid.
Tall.
White and black armor-like patterns covering its body.
No visible face.
Only a smooth surface glowing faintly with system symbols.
Its presence alone silenced the station.
Even the distortion around Noah weakened slightly.
[ ABSOLUTE ENFORCEMENT UNIT ACTIVATED ]
Aarav stared upward calmly.
"…So this is the next step."
The unit landed silently.
No sound.
No wasted motion.
Then—
It looked directly at Noah.
"…Primary irregular confirmed."
Its voice echoed unnaturally.
Cold.
Perfect.
Absolute.
Noah exhaled slowly.
"…Still obsessed with deleting me."
"…Correction remains incomplete."
The Absolute unit raised its hand slightly.
Instantly—
The station froze.
Not metaphorically.
Literally.
The flickering lights stopped mid-flicker.
Dust froze in the air.
Even the sound itself felt delayed.
Mira's eyes widened.
"…What… is this?"
Aarav tried moving his hand slightly.
Resistance.
Everywhere.
"…It locked the entire space," he muttered.
The Absolute unit stepped forward.
Calm.
Controlled.
"…External variables exceed tolerance."
Its attention shifted slightly.
Toward Aarav.
"…Secondary variable confirmed."
A faint pause.
"…Observer interaction detected."
Silence crashed into the station.
Even Noah's expression changed slightly.
"…It detected that already?"
The Absolute unit ignored him.
Its gaze remained fixed on Aarav.
"…Secondary variable escalation authorized."
The pressure intensified instantly.
This time—
Even Aarav felt it clearly.
Not control.
Not restriction.
Erasure.
"…It's trying to overwrite existence itself," Noah said quietly.
Mira looked toward him sharply.
"…How do you stop something like that?"
Noah's expression remained serious.
"…Usually?"
A faint distortion surrounded him again.
"…You don't."
The Absolute unit moved.
Instantly.
Aarav reacted—
Barely.
The strike passed inches from his face.
But even missing—
The wall behind him disappeared.
Not destroyed.
Gone.
Mira's voice shook slightly.
"…That wall…"
"…Was corrected," Noah replied.
"…Completely."
The Absolute unit attacked again.
No buildup.
No hesitation.
Perfect execution.
Aarav moved immediately.
But even then—
The attack clipped his shoulder.
Pain shot through his body instantly.
Not physical pain.
Something deeper.
Like space itself rejected him.
"…Aarav!"
Mira rushed forward.
Noah grabbed her wrist immediately.
"…Don't."
"…What?!"
"…You'll die."
Silence.
Aarav steadied himself slowly.
His breathing uneven now.
But his eyes—
Focused.
"…Interesting," he muttered.
The Absolute unit paused slightly.
"…Define."
A faint smile appeared on Aarav's face.
"…You're scared too."
The station fell silent.
Noah's eyes widened slightly.
"…You really said that to it…"
The Absolute unit's presence sharpened violently.
"…Fear does not exist within correction."
"…Then why escalate?" Aarav replied instantly.
"…Why authorize absolute measures?"
A pause.
Another step forward.
"…Why create something this strong…"
His eyes narrowed sharply.
"…Unless something actually threatens you?"
Silence.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
For the first time—
The Absolute unit didn't respond immediately.
And that alone—
Was answer enough.
The system screens flickered violently.
Warning signals spreading across every surface.
[ RESPONSE PRIORITY INCREASING ]
[ OBSERVER INTERFERENCE RISING ]
Noah's distortion pulsed sharply.
"…That's bad."
Mira looked toward him.
"…What now?"
Noah stared at the Absolute unit carefully.
Then quietly said—
"…Now we find out how far the system is willing to go."
Because this—
Was no longer containment.
No longer correction.
This was war.