The tremors were no longer subtle.
He could feel it running through him, spreading like wildfire.
Micro-control faltered in longer sequences, bursts of energy escaping involuntarily.
The cage he had built so meticulously was straining from within.
She felt it immediately.
Every pulse slammed into her chest, sharper, heavier, harder to brace.
Her lungs burned. Ribs ached. Heart hammering against her chest.
Every flicker, every tremor from him pressed on her like invisible iron chains.
She staggered slightly, bracing herself.
Every micro-slip carried the full weight of his failing control, magnified by the inversion.
"You're… slipping too much," she whispered, quiet, voice trembling slightly with awareness.
"I'm… managing," he said, low, clipped, voice tight—but she could see the strain beneath it.
Jaw tight. Shoulders stiffening. Fingers twitching uncontrollably.
The system pressed harder.
Invisible, subtle, precise:
Gravity fluctuating in micro-shifts
Air thickening, thinning unpredictably
Temperature spiking and dipping randomly
Light warping and flickering
All calculated to push the anomaly to its edge, to see exactly how much the cage could hold before failing.
Another pulse slammed through the bond.
The inversion pressed heavier, sharper than ever.
Her lungs ached. Ribs constricted. Heart racing uncontrollably.
Each micro-slip from him landed full force, dragging her with it.
He hissed quietly, teeth gritted.
Fists curling involuntarily.
Micro-losses repeating in rapid succession, harder to correct, each one magnified by stress.
She pressed a hand to her chest, swallowing past the weight.
Every tremor hammered her body. Every slip hammered her awareness.
The cage was failing from within.
And she realized the truth:
When the first real breach came, she would feel every fragment of it.
Her fingers curled into fists, resolve flaring.
Because when it came…
She would survive it.
The system observed silently. Analytical. Ruthless.
Patiently waiting for the moment the anomaly would break under stress.
And the first true fracture was imminent.