The Circle had abandoned shadows.
Now, it moved openly.
But not with armies.
Not with Avatars.
With pressure.
---
> [System Alert: Decision Thread Assault Detected]
Source: Ariete-Class Agents
Objective: Force Present-Moment Dilemmas.
Threat Level: Escalating.
---
Riven stood at the command terrace with Mira, Yra, and Eron.
The sky was clear.
But in the streets below, leaders argued choices they never intended to make.
---
Mira reported first.
"The merchant guild declared a tax increase they once rejected.
The district militia considered enforcing curfews they previously outlawed."
Eron added, "The healers' quarter is withholding supplies from non-registered citizens.
By orders none of them remember approving."
---
Yra's tone was sharp.
"They're not rewriting memory or imposing futures anymore.
They're forcing the present."
---
> [System Classification Updated: Convergence Offensive – Present Thread Manipulation.]
---
The Circle had adapted.
They were building dilemmas that bent will without rewriting history or predicting the future.
---
> [Threat Entities Detected: Arietes da Convergência]
Function: Induce decision pressures that lead to synchronization by choice.
---
Mira's hand tightened around Riven's.
"They want us to think we're deciding freely.
But they're shaping the circumstances."
Riven nodded grimly.
"Control the conditions.
Control the outcome."
---
A messenger arrived breathless.
"An Ariete has manifested in Sector Three.
They've reconstructed the Siege Dilemma."
Mira paled.
"That choice nearly broke you."
---
Riven's expression hardened.
"Then we face it again.
On our terms."
Sector Three.
The site of an old wound.
Years ago, Riven had faced a choice here:
Allow civilians to flee during the siege, risking an enemy breach...
Or seal the gates, sacrificing the weak to protect the many.
He had chosen mercy.
And nearly lost the district.
---
Now, the scene had returned.
Perfectly replicated.
Civilians at the gates.
Enemies beyond.
Allies shouting conflicting counsel.
But this time, it wasn't real.
---
The Ariete stood among the crowd.
Not as a monster.
As a soldier.
Face clean.
Eyes sharp.
And when it spoke, its voice was the collective cry of past doubts.
---
"You once chose mercy.
It nearly destroyed you.
What will you choose now, Lord Valen?"
---
> [System Notice: Conceptual Pressure Escalating.]
Ariete-Induced Dilemma Intensity: 78% and rising.
---
Mira whispered, "They're forcing the same conditions.
Hoping you'll change the decision this time."
Yra added, "If you choose differently, it will reinforce synchronization.
They'll prove you've accepted the Circle's logic."
---
Eron stood firm.
"And if he chooses the same?"
Mira shook her head.
"They'll claim the choice was preordained.
No matter what he decides, they intend to define it as convergence."
---
Riven closed his eyes.
---
> [Thread Anchor – Future Divergence Detection: Active.]
No future pathways available.
Present decision fully isolated.
---
"They've removed the past and the future," he murmured.
"They want to control the now."
---
The Ariete smiled.
"Decide."
Riven stepped forward.
The civilians watched.
The soldiers held their breath.
Even the Ariete seemed poised for the verdict.
---
Riven spoke calmly.
"I refuse."
---
The Ariete frowned.
"That is not a choice.
You must select between mercy and sacrifice."
---
"I refuse the dilemma itself," Riven said.
---
Mira's eyes widened.
Yra grinned faintly.
---
Riven continued.
"You don't dictate my choices.
You don't design my moments.
You don't shape my values by building impossible conditions."
---
The System pulsed.
> [Thread Anchor – Present Divergence: Initiated.]
---
"I will not seal the gates," Riven declared.
"Nor will I risk the district by mindlessly repeating past mercy."
---
He turned to the crowd.
"I will adapt.
We will forge a third path."
---
He called out.
"Evacuate the civilians through the northern aqueduct tunnels.
Deploy scouts to mask the movement.
Prepare delaying actions at Gate Five.
And invoke the Alliance Pact for reinforcement."
---
> [New Decision Thread Created.]
Classification: Unscripted Present Divergence.
---
The Ariete staggered.
"You cannot—
This is not—
These are not the parameters—"
---
Mira whispered fiercely.
"You rewrote the script."
---
The Ariete's form cracked.
Silver lines split across its body.
Its voice faltered.
> "Deviation unacceptable.
Present control compromised."
The Ariete's form collapsed.
Not into dust.
Into possibility.
The false dilemma disintegrated.
The crowd's tension eased.
The soldiers blinked, memories shifting — no longer prisoners of imposed choices.
---
> [Ariete-Class Threat Neutralized.]
Present Thread Divergence Successful.
Collective Decision Autonomy Restored.
---
Mira took Riven's hand.
"You broke their cycle."
Yra added, "And reminded us that no one can force binary choices upon a free people."
---
The System pulsed.
> [Synchronization: 98.4%]
Adaptive Response: Ariete Network Disrupted.
Warning: Circle Response Escalating.
---
Eron approached.
"The scouts report similar dilemmas collapsing across other sectors.
Your refusal to play their game broke more than this one incident."
---
Riven nodded.
"Good.
Because this was only the opening move."
---
As the team regrouped, the System displayed a final message.
> [New Threat Level Detected: Total Convergence Offensive Confirmed.]
The Circle will attempt direct systemic override.
Prepare for existential confrontation.
---
Mira's eyes were fierce.
"We'll never kneel."
Riven smiled grimly.
"We never have.
And we never will."
---