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It has been quite a few weeks since Crypto had joined the games. Meanwhile his priority remained the same, something weird happened.
The old man.
Ever since the beggining, they ended up in the same team every damn time. No matter when the match started or ended, the two always survived together.
The more conversation they held, the closer they became. Still, Crypto was very careful with his words as always. The hacker holds secrets no one could know or it would be the end for him. It was just casual chatting between them.
Up until one day, when things became serious. Their feelings changed towards the other, soon, friendship formed into love. Or at least liking each other.
Mirage took interest in the younger male, mostly because of the mysteries he held. He was curious, but asking wasn’t the way to get to know him. So instead of that, Mirage just kept talking and talking about himself, and that made Crypto talk as well.
Everything went fine up until one day - they got separated. No one knew how that would end up, not even them. Both Mirage and Crypto saw one goal - being the champion.
It was cold when Crypto hit the ground. Hissing in pain, he cursed himself for joining the games. He had no spectacular talent in using weapons or fighting, but this was his only way out - going further into the hell he longed to escape.
Both of his squadmates had been killed and he was the only one remaining. The hacker had to fight his way to retrieve their banner which meant killing Pathfinder - a highly homicidal robot. He was pretty strong, it only took him a second to break two of Crypto’s rib. No med kit could ease his pain, but he had to get the banners to the respawn beacon. It was their only way of winning this game. It seemed like an impossible task since the nearest one was on the other side of World’s Edge. Going in the daylight would have meant suicide, so Crypto waited ‘till night, like the smart man he is.
Before finishing his mission, he sent his drone on an exploration. He wanted to make sure he’s not gonna end up as a deathbox before he could get the banners to the beacon. The drone didn’t signal a single enemy so he decided - now is the time.
Gripping the banner cards tight, he got up from the cold ground. He spent the last seven hours in a small house, not getting a minute of sleep. He was too nervous to do that.
Every little movement felt like endless pain, even breathing felt miserable.
Just 300 more meters. That’s noting - he thought to himself.
Gathering all of his strength together, he got up to his feet and started running, fast as he could. It was around midnight and he spent the night in an highly abandoned area. Who could be here?
He saw that bright green light, giving him some hope of winning this game when someone shot him in the shoulder. Crypto hissed in pain, as he fell to his knees. Blood started dripping down on his jacket, hitting the ground. Who could it be? He made sure no one is here, what happened then?
“Nice moves, kid” he immediately recognized the voice and playful attitude. His breathing sped up and his heart rate changed to a different, faster pace. This moment felt unreal. “but this is your goodbye.”
Mirage felt like a totally different person in the Ring, he had to acknowledge that. Crypto always silently prayed before every match - just let him be on the same team as me.
Quickly reaching after his gun, Mirage just simply kicked it out of his hand. The tricksters reflexes were the best in the Outlands, not a single competitor for the title.
“No weapon’s gonna save you now.” Mirage added, as he reached after his wingman to finish the hostile man off - not to mention that this hostile man was his lover. But none of the current scene felt like that. The whole thing felt as they are actual enemies, wanting to kill each other. He aimed at Crypto with a small, victorious smile.
“Any last wishes?”
The hacker gathered all of his strength to sit up and grab Mirage’s arm. Accepting his loss against the older legend, he tightly pushed the gun to the bottom of his own chin. The trickster’s eyes changed in a second. It wasn’t Mirage anymore, but Elliott in the Ring. He had no idea what Crypto’s next move would be, but he knew he didn’t want to witness it.
“See you in hell, trickster.”
Just like that, Crypto has pulled the trigger.
The next thing the hacker knew is that his eyes were burning out. He slowly raised his arm up just to cover himself from the strong, white light.
Everything felt warm and comfortable around him now. Where could he be? It feels like a bed.
“Hey, you okay?” a soft voice asked him.
Again, he recognized the voice in a second, it just felt different now. Elliott was sitting next to his bed in a causal outfit now. Crypto just shrugged, and answered in a deadpan tone.
“Pathfinder broke two of my ribs and you shot me. Guess I can say I’m okay?” it felt more like a question from the hacker’s mouth as a small smile appeared on his lips. It was rare to see him smile, so Elliott embraced the moment.
“Sorry, you know I kinda had to. A game’s a game.”
“Yeah, no hard feelings.”
“How are your wounds?” the trickster asked, a bit of worry hiding behind his words.
“I don’t think I can compete in the next game, my shoulder will be alright, that’s not the main problem.” Crypto sighed.
“I see…” Elliott looked lost in his thoughts, wondering how can he help the younger legend recover faster. “I’m gonna make you one hell of a tea now, that may help a bit.” he got up from his place to get to the kitchen, when he suddenly turned around. “Now that I mentioned it, do you really wanna see me in hell?”
Crypto just looked at him, kind of confused.
“You’re competing in a bloodsport. Where else do you think we’ll go?”
Elliott just smiled a little.
“Yeah, I think you’re right.” and as that, he left the room to make the best tea the hacker possibly ever had.