Dark Energy's Last Stand: The Sauer-Limit and the Coming Contraction

We examine whether the observed weakening of dark energy can be understood as the dilution of a residual geometric tension left in the spacetime holonomy after the bounce. Constraining an effective odd profile for this tension by the present DESI slope yields a zero-crossing at finite scale factor. The expansion therefore reaches a maximum—the Sauer-Limit—and the universe subsequently contracts toward the next bounce. The same data that indicate a dynamical dark-energy component thereby also indicate that the present universe emerged from a prior bounce and will return to one. The implication is that the cosmos is neither infinite in extent nor unique in time; earlier cycles existed, and further cycles are expected.