The attack came from every direction.
The creatures no longer hesitated. The blue light in their bodies blazed wildly, moving fast, cutting through the water in unpredictable patterns. They weren't just attacking—they were closing the space.
Locking it down.
"Multiple hostiles—close range!" the AI's voice rose half a level.
Garuda Inferno hadn't even finished recovering from the last attack when the first one hit.
CRACK.
A massive body slammed into the unit's right side. Armor groaned; fine cracks appeared at the joints. Before it could regain balance—
the second one came from below.
A brutal blow.
Garuda's leg lifted off the seabed. For a moment, the unit lost its footing.
Tomy tightened his grip.
"Stabilize."
The lower thrusters ignited. Pressure was forcibly released. Garuda Inferno dropped again, hitting the seabed with full weight, kicking up a cloud of sand and coral.
Not over yet.
Three more silhouettes emerged from the water haze.
Fast.
Too fast for their size.
"Attack pattern changed," said the AI. "Primary target: unit's center of mass."
They were learning.
The first creature circled, locking onto the rear. Another pressed from the front. One more dove, aiming for the exposed underside.
Not random.
Coordinated.
Tomy hit the controls.
Garuda Inferno spun, faster than before. Its right arm swept wide, smacking one creature away. The water exploded around it.
But the other two kept coming.
A massive tentacle lashed from the side.
CRACK.
The cockpit rattled violently. Lights flickered. Data spiked chaotically.
"Damage increasing—"
The AI's sentence was cut off by another impact.
Garuda Inferno was shoved back several meters, carving a long trench into the seabed.
Tomy gritted his teeth.
His breathing grew heavy.
Black Garuda Mode wasn't dead yet.
But it was already… biting back.
"Pilot synchronization dropping," the AI reported. "88%… 84%…"
The number fell slowly. Too fast for combat conditions like these.
The creatures didn't stop.
They weren't rushing to kill.
They were pressing.
Forcing.
As if waiting for something to collapse from within.
"AI," Tomy said quietly. "They're not just attacking."
"Confirmed," the AI replied. "They are testing the unit's limits."
Or the pilot's limits.
The trench ahead still lay open.
And from within—
those eyes kept watching.
Not joining the attack.
Not moving.
Just… waiting.
Garuda Inferno raised its arm again. Energy gathered, but this time it was unstable. The vibrations broke apart midway.
"Output dropping drastically," said the AI. "Black Garuda Mode is approaching its limit."
Tomy took a deep breath.
The world outside the cockpit began to feel… too clear.
The water currents.
The pressure.
The creatures' movements.
All of it poured into his head at once.
Too much.
"Synchronization at 79%…"
One creature struck again from the front. Garuda Inferno held, but its legs slipped. The seabed cracked under the strain.
Another creature immediately came from the side.
CRACK.
The left arm was hit hard. The systems there flickered; response time slowed.
"Partial function lost."
Tomy was silent for a moment.
Not because he was confused.
But because he realized.
This wasn't about winning anymore.
This was about—
how long he could hold out.
"AI," he finally said. "Time estimate."
A pause.
"Black Garuda Mode will collapse in… less than three minutes."
Three minutes.
Ahead—the trench entity began to move again.
Around him—the forces kept pressing.
And inside—
Tomy's head began to hum faintly.
Not the sound of machinery.
Another sound.
Weak. Deep.
As if coming from the same place as that trench.
"Tomy," the AI's voice changed slightly. "Neural activity is abnormal."
Tomy didn't answer.
His eyes stayed forward.
Toward the darkness slowly rising.
"If three minutes is enough…" he murmured quietly, barely audible,
"then there's still time."
Garuda Inferno planted its feet deeper into the seabed.
The red lines on its body glowed brighter.
Not stable.
But forced.
The creatures attacked again.
Faster.
Closer.
And beneath it all—
something in the trench began to… wake up completely.