Crystalline Universe: Team Fortress 2 Overwatch - Volume 3: Crystalline Universe: Bloodline's Curse Chapter 75 Dilemma Of Destiny

The wind blew like a storm and the tension boiled like a volcano, Karson stood a few metres away from Toro, both men ready to fight to the death. A single wrong move and they will face disintegration from their foe, if not the abyss on both sides of the train.

Karson knew full well he’s in a disadvantageous situation since Toro stood well outside of his ability’s range of 5 metres. On the other hand, Toro knew full well the destructive power of Karson’s ability and the young man’s mastery over it.

[Toro] – “Your move, young man! ”

Taking a defensive stance, Toro raised his hands and braced himself for Karson’s attack. Karson, without losing the opportunity, charged forward to close the gap between him and the executioner.

Suddenly, Toro moved to an offensive position by melting the metal around himself before launching them toward Karson. But to Toro’s surprise, Karson had the opposite idea in mind as he took a defensive position and blocked the wave of burning liquid.

Sadly for the young man, he could not make himself invulnerable to the entire attack as some of the 1538C substance got to him and left burn marks all over his body.

[Karson] (in pain) – “Aaaaargh! ”

Without losing a second, Toro took advantage of the wind direction to send waves of heat toward Karson. With a single punch, the shockwave sent by Karson blew the wind away from him, thus preventing himself from getting burned but Toro didn’t stop and kept on sending more and more heatwaves.

Karson stood up and started to send waves after waves of punch barrages which kept on blowing the wind away. The heatwaves around him looked made Karson look like a giant fireball as he started to advance toward Toro.

[Karson] – “I will get to you, I will walk to you like how Moses crossed the Red Sea. ”

As Karson got closer, Toro immediately understood that he’s currently no match against his opponent and at this rate, he will lose; he needs a quick and swift victory.

Suddenly, Toro turned his back on Karson and started to run toward the train’s front. Seeing the situation, Karson rapidly pursued his adversary in a run against the wind as the wind made both of their advances difficult.

[Toro] – “You may wanna turn back, you don’t wanna blindly pursue me like this. ”

[Karson] – “To do what? To let you escape? In your dream, old man! ”

[Toro] – “The wisest action is to not pursue an uncertain future with possibly unwanted outcomes. ”

[Karson] – You can’t win if you never try! ”

Since Toro’s shoes have magnetizers, he can advance without worrying about the wind blowing him back but for Karson, it’s a different story, since he only has normal sport shoes.

Seeing as Toro moved farther and farther away from him, Karson started to lose his cool. He knows that if Toro manages to get away, their whole team’s operation would be exposed to Talon and they will never be safe living in this world.

In a single jump, Karson leaped toward Toro while blowing the wind away from him but Toro stared, unsurprised by the young man’s action. In another word, Toro expected him to do so and was prepared to face such case.

Upon landing, Karson threw a rage-fueled punch at Toro, who dodged the attack and leaped to the side while the damage dealt by the strike left a huge hole through the wagon all the way to the tracks. Before Karson could react, Toro kicked him in the face and sent him flying down the side where the young man held by a random metallic handle.

Below his feet is the railways of a train moving at more than 500Km per hour while beyond his head is a ruthless, murderous executioner who will show no mercy in his regard.

Toro stepped a few steps back and when he got far enough away to outrange the young man’s ability and for him to get a clear view at Karson, he crossed his arms.

[Toro] – “I guess this is the end, young man. Your journey has ended alongside your life. ”

[Karson] – ” *grumble in anger* ”

[Toro] – “This is truly a sacred moment, the end of someone’s life. All the things that you lived through, all the bloodshed and teardrops and all the loved ones… gone with the wind and returned to the earth. But unlike others, I will remember you. You may have knowledge considered wrong but I will treasure them so I could tell others where they did wrong. ”

Karson stared down trying to hide his grin and looked straight into Toro’s eyes with a confident stare.

[Karson] – “This is where you’re wrong… the only things that will be gone with the wind are people like you, who confuses chaos with justice. ”

Toro knew something was off about the situation, he knew Karson set a trap somewhere… but where? He felt nervous and unprepared for the unknown danger that is about to hit him, he felt the sensation of failure for missing out on his enemy’s next move.

[Toro] – “Trickery, huh? I thought you were an honourable fighter who fought fair and square. ”

[Karson] – “This isn’t about honour, old man, it’s about victory. ”

[Toro] – “Trickery will only put yourself at a disadvantage since you don’t know the possible outcomes. ”

[Karson] – “Then let’s find out then! ”

Toro prepared his fists to fend off Karson’s possible attack despite knowing that he’s out of the young man’s reach. But Karson isn’t going for a basic attack since his trap was already set up.

With a single punch to the wall, Karson triggered an energy surge all through the cargo wagon which shattered everything from pieces of Toro’s armour to his magnetizer and from Karson’s left-hand bones to the powerplant on his arm due to the intensive vibration it caused. The intensive shaking almost even caused the train to fall off course.

In truth, earlier, when Karson launched a punch toward Toro, he did not aim at his foe but instead, the wagon, which he overcharged with energy.

Right after the initial shock, Karson used his intact right hand to grab onto the handle to let his broken left arm to rest. Toro, on the other hand, lost balance due to the damages sustained on his armour and fell down the hole Karson punched through the wagon toward the tracks.

Karson observed as soon as Toro hit the tracks, sparks and cracking explosions littered the train’s underside before stopping a few wagons behind. Ensuing the explosion, a thick frog of black smoke littered the air while the train started to slow down but kept running at a considerable speed.

Karson looked back behind him and wondered in his head: “Is this over or is this just the beginning? ”

Due to the reduced speed, Karson was able to pull himself back inside a wagon where he sat and rest for a moment in agony. The bones and flesh in his left arm are completely reduced to a soft goo while his stamina was diminished to nothingness. He still holds an uncertain victory over his opponent, who could still miraculously come back any second from now.

[Karson] – “Trickery means uncertainties… nice words, old man… but if I really failed, to hell with it, at least I can spare my ears from your voice if I die. *cough* Bloody hell… ”

*Somewhere in the unnamed city

The crowded city streets were just in front of them, and Sepoltura knew how easily Azur could lose him amid the civilian population, so he must act quickly. After taking careful aim, Sepoltura fired his gun at Azur once more, this time hitting her in the neck.

As bloody flowed out of her vein, Azur was forced to sacrifice another of her sapphire to stop the bleeding. Before she could realize how slowly she was moving, Sepoltura caught up to her and grabbed her by the neck.

On the ground, the citizens were confused and horrified to see two persons floating in the air with one of them trying to kill the other. Meanwhile, Sepoltura tightened his grasp in satisfaction as he felt successful and proud of himself for about to land his first major kill of his career.

He’s about to complete his destiny, he’s about to become a real executioner fighting for justice and right. But to his shock, there is no fear or worry inside Azur’s eyes, instead, she stared sharply and calmly back at him.

All he could feel is a sharp pain in the palm of his hand before feeling his carpal bones breaking through the intense and incomprehensible pressure coming from an unknown object under his hand.

Not wanting to let go of his prey, Sepoltura held on to Azur’s neck despite the unbearable suffering as he did not want to feel like a coward that gives up so easily until suddenly, Azur’s gem broke out through the backside of his hand.

In agony, Sepoltura released his prey while screaming out of pain but before he could get back to Azur, the girl unleashed all the liquid paint she carried with her, creating a huge multicoloured explosion in the air before disappearing as the mist hit the ground.

When Sepoltura rid the paint covering his face, he completely lost sight of Azur as the whole street and the people present were covered in paint, which made it impossible to locate the girl despite her unique clothing.

Sepoltura didn’t know what to do, he’s completely lost and powerless in front of such situation. He thought to himself: “No, no, I failed… this can’t be, It can’t be like this… ”

He trembled as he thought about how much his brother would be disappointed by his failure. The fear kept on building up as he imagined himself without a future, without success and without respect.

After a few seconds, Sepoltura took a few deep breaths to ease his stress and sat by a building’s balcony to recover some of his stamina.

[Sepoltura] – “What would bro do in this case? ”

He dove into his memory trying to find something Toro said in the past before remembering one of his phrases said on the train.

[Sepoltura] – “Sacrifice! Victory comes with sacrifice! I need to sacrifice, I need to sacrifice in order to win! She can’t be out of my ability’s range yet, I can still kill her! ”

He stood up and stare down at the busy street crowded with civilian population everywhere before calmly activating his ability.

[Sepoltura] – “I’m sorry, all the strangers down there I don’t know, you will all perish in the name of justice, in the cause of a brighter future. ”

*Meanwhile on Sniper’s birthday party

Mazzatello sat with the other high ranking officers of Talon beside Sniper on a luxurious guest table specially filled with the most exquisite food and dessert, the finest wines and drinks and delicate boxes of quality cigars. Sniper introduced Mazzatello as the new supreme commander of the XX while the Judge was introduced as the new supreme commander of operation Recollection which consisted of the entire western front against the Allies.

During this time, as Mazzatello discussed with other officers, Scuoiamento ran to Mazzatello and whispered words inside his ear. Even though Mazzatello never shows his face, others can tell how shocked he is by the unknown news.

[Mazzatello] – “Excuse me, gentlemen, lord Sniper, may I take my leave for a few minutes? I will return soon and again, my apologies. ”

[Sniper] – “You may, Mazzatello, you may. ”

[Judge] – “Of course, no rush, my friend. ”

Mazzatello followed Scuoiamento to a private room where a communication device laid on the table. Scuoiamento didn’t need to speak for Mazzatello to understand the situation as he picked up the intercom and silently whispered: “Allo? ”

The voice that came out from the other side of the phone was bone-chilling as Mazzatello widen his eyes in shock and surprise.

[Toro] (in a weak and wounded voice) – “Mazzatello, is that you, friend? ”

[Mazzatello] (in a concerned tone) – “Toro! Where are you? ”

[Toro] – “On a train somewhere between the city of Vienna and Munich but listen, I need you to send me a pick-up, I can’t feel my legs anymore. ”

[Mazzatello] – “What happened to you? Why are you in such critical condition? ”

[Toro] – “I fought a worthy opponent that I should’ve not underestimated… I can deal with him but I won’t make it myself afterward, so I need reinforcement. ”

[Mazzatello] – “Hang on there, my friend… I… ”

Mazzatello froze as his concern became bigger as he realized the severity of the entire situation.

[Mazzatello] (in a reassuring voice) – “I will see what I can do. ”

[Toro] – “Thank you, old friend, I see you later. ”

Mazzatello hanged up the intercom and sat in silence, drowning in deep thoughts and reflections on the dilemma he’s facing.

[Scuoiamento] – “What happened? ”

[Mazzatello] – “Toro is in trouble… he needs our help. ”

[Scuoiamento] – “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go help him. ”

As Scuoiamento prepared herself to leave, Mazzatello remained behind without a movement.

[Scuoiamento] – “What’s wrong, chief? ”

[Mazzatello] – “We can’t! ”

[Scuoiamento] – “Why? He’s our friend, we need to save him, why can’t we? ”

[Mazzatello] – “First of all, I’m not officially in command of the XX, so I have no command over the executioners and troops all around the association yet and second of all, we have not right to disrespect lord Sniper by leaving his birthday party… ”

[Scuoiamento] (in a confused voice) – “But… But… ”

[Mazzatello] – “Third of all, they are on a mission without lord Sniper’s consent or my order, thus if we helped them, we will be considered traitors all 3 of us. ”

[Scuoiamento] – “But think, he’s our friend, we must help him! Is this how you see things? ”

[Mazzatello] – “I have yet to make my move, give me time to decide, please. ”

*On the train

Karson took a breath of relief as, after a few minutes, no sign of an attack could be spotted and everything seemed much more peaceful. Thinking that his foe could no longer be a threat after sustaining such injuries down the tracks, Karson carelessly started to move toward the train’s front.

Mergiann could still be in danger and he needs to get there as fast as he can before it’s too late.

All of a sudden, he felt an intense heat all around him and not long after, the floor became so hot that his shoes started to melt upon contact.

3 wagon behind, Toro, stuck between a suspension and few pieces of broken machinery, kept his ability active despite suffering grievous injuries from 2 shattered legs to missing muscles and punctured lungs.

[Toro] (with a mouth full of blood) – “Fahrenheit 451… ”

Karson’s shoes soon melted off and his feet started to be cooked by the burning floor while the atmosphere around him looked as if he was in an oven. The wall soon became red while the heat slowly consumed Karson.

[Toro] – “I’ve learned a lot from you but in end, I have the stronger resolve… I was like an unripe flower by the start but you helped me bloom. Now, I know you can attack but… can you escape? This is the weakness of your ability; you can only fight but not save you or others from the imminent doom. ”

Karson has lesser and lesser time to make an escape plan as the heat kept on consuming him. His ability doesn’t allow him to escape since it’s purely an offensive/defensive ability without granting agility.

Who will have the stronger will to come out victorious? Motivated by their motives, Sepoltura, Karson and Mazzatello would have to make a choice, a choice that will shape their future, shape everyone’s destiny along with it.

To be continued… Next Chapter: [The final decision]