She didn't stop.
The energy surged...
And her hand...
Connected.
A sharp burst of force slammed into Elric's chest...
Not explosive...
Not destructive...
Precise.
He was thrown back...
Sliding across the neon-lit ground...
Crashing into a low barrier.
Mii screamed.
"PLAYER...!"
Kaida-9 moved instantly...
But Lyra was faster.
She was already in motion...
Blade drawn...
Stopping just short of Elen.
"…Stand down," Lyra said coldly.
Elen didn't respond.
Didn't even look at her.
Her gaze stayed locked on Elric.
"…Target displaced," she said.
Her voice...
Still wrong.
Still too clean.
Sera stepped beside Lyra.
"…She's not aiming to kill."
Pix snapped,
"Yeah, I noticed!"
Mii ran to Elric's side.
"Hey... hey... say something!"
Elric groaned.
"…Okay," he muttered.
"…that one hurt."
Mii let out a breath.
"GOOD. You're alive. Stay that way."
He winced slightly, sitting up.
"…I've had worse."
But his eyes...
Locked back onto Elen.
"…She held back."
Silence.
Pix froze.
"…Wait."
Sera turned sharply.
"…You're certain?"
Elric nodded slowly.
"…Yeah."
A beat.
"…That wasn't a kill shot."
Across from them...
Elen stood still.
Watching.
Her arm lowered now.
Energy gone.
Lyra didn't relax.
"…State your intent."
Elen tilted her head slightly.
"…Objective remains."
A pause.
"…Eliminate anomaly."
Mii shouted,
"HE HAS A NAME...!"
Pix wasn't looking at Elen anymore.
She was looking at the space around her.
"…No," Pix whispered.
Sera glanced at her.
"…What?"
Pix's eyes narrowed.
"…That wasn't her choice."
Lyra didn't take her eyes off Elen.
"…Explain."
Pix stepped slightly to the side.
"…Look at the pattern."
Silence.
Then...
Sera saw it.
"…Her movement…"
A pause.
"…It's constrained."
Kaida-9 confirmed.
"…Micro-delays detected."
Lyra's eyes sharpened.
"…She's being guided."
Pix nodded.
"…Yeah."
A beat.
"…Like a script."
Mii shook her head.
"…No... no, she told him to run..."
Silence.
That moment...
Hung in the air.
Elric slowly stood up.
"…Yeah," he said quietly.
"…she did."
All eyes turned back to Elen.
Still.
Watching.
But now...
Something was off.
Tiny.
Almost invisible.
But there.
Her fingers...
Slightly trembling.
Not enough to notice normally.
But enough...
If you were looking.
Lyra stepped forward slowly.
"…You're fighting it."
Elen didn't respond.
But...
Her hand twitched.
Just once.
Pix whispered,
"…There."
Sera nodded.
"…Confirmed."
Kaida-9 added,
"…Internal conflict present."
Mii stepped forward.
"…Then we help her!"
Lyra raised a hand.
Stopping her.
"…No sudden moves."
Elric stepped past them.
"…Too late for that."
Mii grabbed his arm.
"HEY... no heroic walking!"
He gently pulled free.
"…I'm not being heroic."
A beat.
"…I'm being stupid."
Pix grinned slightly.
"…That tracks."
Elric walked forward.
Slowly.
Directly toward Elen.
Lyra tensed.
"…If she attacks again..."
"…she won't," Elric said.
A pause.
"…or she'll try not to."
Elen didn't move.
Didn't step back.
Didn't attack.
Just watched him approach.
Her expression...
Still wrong.
But her eyes...
Struggling.
"…You said I'm the source," Elric said.
A step closer.
"…so what happens if I don't go anywhere?"
Silence.
Elen's voice responded.
"…then removal remains necessary."
But...
Her tone wavered.
Just slightly.
Elric stopped right in front of her.
Close enough now...
To see it clearly.
The conflict.
The hesitation.
"…You're bad at this," he said.
A beat.
"…you're not convincing."
Mii whispered behind him,
"…that is NOT how you de-escalate..."
Pix whispered back,
"…no no, let him cook."
Elen's hand twitched again.
"…directive is clear," she said.
Elric tilted his head.
"…yeah," he said.
"…but you're not."
Silence.
That hit.
Something shifted.
Just slightly.
Elen's eyes flickered...
Not like the masks.
Not like the system.
Like her.
"…conflict…" she whispered again.
Sera stepped forward slightly.
"…She's breaking through."
Lyra didn't move.
"…Not enough."
The figure in the distance...
The unmoving one...
Finally moved.
One step.
Toward them.
And suddenly...
Elen stiffened.
Hard.
Her expression snapped back.
Cold.
Controlled.
"…priority override," she said.
Her hand raised again.
Faster this time.
Stronger.
No hesitation.
Mii shouted,
"NO...!"
Elric didn't move.
Didn't step back.
Just watched her.
"…Yeah," he said quietly.
"…that doesn't add up."
The energy surged...
The strike about to fall...
And for a split second...
Elen's eyes...
Broke.
Not fully.
But enough.
Enough to see the truth.
She wasn't choosing this.
She was being forced.