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An arc star had stuck Octane when he was already at half health. He was down on the ground in a flash. He did his best to crawl behind a truck, hoping that the team at Bunker would not push forward. Crypto was sitting on a ledge near Bunker, right across from one of the small wooden houses sitting on top of the river.
"I'm going to EMP. Could you port him out?" He radios in, to Wraith. She guards Octane as she takes potshots at the other team to keep them at bay. Crypto gets his drone to the Bunker and quickly uses his EMP to distract the other team.
Wraith is quick to run back towards the sandy dunes with a portal. When the port sets, Crypto jumps down to push Octane through and meets him on the other side. He begins to revive him while Wraith continues to hold off the enemy team, leaving the two alone for a few seconds.
“Don’t go rushing in again, you fool.” Crypto says while pressing the syringe into Octane. They couldn’t make eye contact like this, but Crypto could feel Octane staring at him. His quiet pants made him aware that he was still in pain, but there was a brief moment of Octane putting his hand over Crypto’s that sent a shiver up his spine.
“Gracias amigo, but I can’t promise I won’t try to do that again.” Octane gives a short chuckle, but it feels forced. After Crypto gets him back up, he quickly crouches to the side and pulls out a pheonix kit to patch up the rest of his wounds. Crypto looks over Octane, sighing.
Misattribution of arousal.
Crypto came across it when he had to Google what he was feeling when it came to Octane. However, by reading some articles, he realized that by being in stupidly dangerous situations all the time with the adrenaline junkie (A.K.A. every time they were in a squad together) he had obtained a false sense of feelings towards the other man.
Looking at him now, and remembering the warmth of his fingers on his hand made him shake his head as he reloaded his weapon. That shiver up his spine from before meant nothing, it was just because he had surprised him. That’s what the problem with his feelings were. Octane was an unpredictable person and Crypto knew that trying to be calculated and tactical around him meant nothing. He just had to hope his feelings faded because he didn’t even want to imagine boosting Octane’s ego by admitting he had some sort of attraction to the daredevil. They were both ready to fight again as Wraith phased right back in, quickly pulling a shield battery out of her bag.
“There’s a third party. I backed out but they might push us.” She says, using the shield batt. “If they don’t, we might have an advantage towards the end of their fight.”
Crypto nods, getting back into his drone to scout out the area. The two teams were still fighting, though there were knocks on both sides. It would end as quickly as it started. The fact that Wraith even got out was surprising. The entrance to Bunker had always been a difficult area to deal with third parties.
“Two squads in the area. We have the drop.” He said, getting out of his drone.
“Only two? There’s gotta be another squad already on their way compadre.” Octane said, surprising Crypto a bit. It wasn’t often that he planned too much ahead out in the arena, though he had to admit he felt bad doubting him like this. Most people gave him a rough time because he tended to choose action over planning, but Octane wasn’t all stunts and no brain. He had to admit that some of his stunts seemed to take a lot of dedication and planning, with all the calculations to ensure things would go right.
Crypto mentally scolds himself for getting too caught up in his Oc-train of thought. He’d have to focus if he didn’t want to lose. They were luckily in the final 6. That meant there were 3 other squads unaccounted for, and they’d have to deal with the teams that were here before rotating in towards Containment.
"Who kidnapped Octane and replaced him?" Wraith asks, stealing the words right out of Crypto's mouth. "Let's get back in there and clean up whoever is left."
Octane says nothing as he jumps back through the portal. Crypto and Wraith follow closely behind.
There's a brief flicker of his drone catching someone right outside of the Bunker, but a few gunshots and a small explosion let's him know his drone has been destroyed. He relays that information to his squad before they push forward, but they assume at this point there's only one team left in the Bunker.
It was subtle, but Crypto could definitely hear the faint sound of reviving. There was a panic with that sound. They had to get in there, now! Before they could open it however, Wraith paused, holding them back.
"There's a trap nearby." She grumbled, trying to peek through the musty Bunker windows. Crypto checks the timer on his watch. 45 seconds before the ring closed. It would be ring 3 so it was a bit risky if they drew out the fight for too long. They'd definitely get gatekept or die to the ring.
"Should we just hold the hill?" Crypto asks. Octane stares at him briefly, but says nothing again. He wonders if he did something to upset the man. Well, whatever they had a murder game to focus on.
"Someone's got a shot on me-" Wraith barely squeezes out the warning before the sharp impact of a charged up sentinel hits her in the shoulder and cracks her shields. They look up to see that the hill has a new team sitting up top. A scan from Bloodhound makes them dash to the building below the hill, Wraith phasing into the building to avoid getting knocked. A flatline rattles its bullets at Octane and Crypto, a stray sentinel shot barely hitting them as they barrel through the doorway.
"I told you guys-" Octane starts, but Crypto doesn't listen to him finish. He gets distracted when he realizes how close he was to Octane. Realizing he needs to scout things out, he holds the door as he crouches and gets into his spare drone. He'd pay attention to Octane when they weren't being attacked and he wasn't flustered. Wraith uses another shield battery and Octane moves to guard the front door.
Crypto's drone goes out through the hole in the roof, trying to get an angle on the squad up top. Bloodhound had an unmatched position at the top with their sentinel, leaving Crypto to quietly mutter a curse to himself. Their teammates were equally as vigilant, Bangalore and Wattson keeping keen eyes on the Bunker door.
At this point they all knew the Bunker team was stuck. The ring had already closed on the other side. Unless they'd already made it through the second ring and gotten to the other side of the mountain, they were screwed here. The loud, jarring sound of the Bunker door shutting and closing let him know it was the former situation. He recalls his drone and catches Octane staring at him. There's a pit of discomfort in his stomach but he begins to talk about his plan.
"There's no way the team up top would push us and lose high ground with the ring closing so soon." Crypto says. The others nod, also watching the Bunker door. "I say we try to rush to the jump tower and fly to Containment."
He was expecting some opposition from Octane. Normally he'd suggest landing on the hill in an attempt to hold out the other squad, but for once it seemed like he had some fear of the ring. At least that's what he assumed. He couldn't get a good read on the other man, though he seemed just as fidgety as usual. He'd just have to hope he'd say something during a fight, and hope this wasn't as big of an issue as he thought he was building it up to be.
"Okay." Wraith says. Octane gives a small nod. As they begin to move out, the clock is ticking. "10 seconds from the ring, we're close."
There's the sound of bullets thundering once more, and Crypto feels bad for the Bunker squad. Then he remembers Caustic is on that team and his pity dies down. They feel like they're in the clear when a crack of the sentinel rings out again. Just as he hops onto the jump tower, Crypto feels the bullet drive into his back.
"I've been hit-" He says, panicking as he's lost his shields. One more hit and he'd be a goner. He knows Bloodhound isn't just a lucky shot, they probably won't miss again. He panics and hops off of the jump tower, watching as Wraith and Octane continue to make it up. Another ring of the sentinel fires at them, but luckily it whizzes just past Octane. Crypto is surprised they hadn't shot at him again, but then he realizes the ring is right on him. They wouldn't need another shot to finish him off when the ring could do the dirty work.
He tries his best to run, but he can't help but feel the sting of the ring catching up to him. He pops a syringe and hopes he can catch up to his team.
Octane and Wraith manage to get into the corner building at Containment, the one that sits below the watchtower. Crypto grows worried as he tries to use a medkit.
"It's just a few more meters." He thinks, but there's a chance he hadn't administered the medication quick enough. He grits his teeth as the medication takes effect right at the last second, buying him just a bit more time in the ring to get to his squad. It was difficult to manage, but it seemed like everyone was preoccupied with some other squad. Caustic's squad was on the kill feed, dying at the hands of Bloodhound's squad. It was only a matter of time before they got out of ring and made their presence among the other teams already there.
Another squad dies to ring, leaving the squad counter at 4. There wasn't an exact number of people left, meaning they could assume there might be a duo or solo. Crypto had been so caught up in out running the ring he couldn't remember what the count was before.
The building they camp doesn't have the high ground advantage that the largest building in Containment has, but there was already another team in that building. Rampart had put her shields up all over the place, building a fortress right in the middle of the ring. It didn't seem like Sheila had been up yet, but they knew it would only be a matter of time.
Another squad was positioned up on the watchtower, and luck seemed on their side as they had a kraber. Though the shots were few and far in between, it seemed like the sniper had a vendetta against Rampart's squad. They managed to knock Pathfinder once, but didn't take the initiative to push.
"Annoying…" Crypto mutters, getting into his drone. He flies it up to the watchtower, trying to get as much information as he could about the squad above. "Lifeline...she has the Kraber. And…Revenant. I don't see a third."
Wraith seems to take note as Octane keeps a lookout. There's a stand-still for a moment. It's eerily quiet, no shots or pushes. It's tense. And then the sound of the kraber goes off again. No one goes down. Crypto lets out the breath he didn't realize he was holding. Crypto drones around again, checking Rampart's building.
"Another duo," He relays. He finally takes a peek at Bloodhound's squad, confirming the whole squad was alive and well in the other building. Fences were everywhere, but Wattson's pylon wasn't up. He'd have to remember that.
Now they had to make a plan. Wraith was trying to come up with the best way to take out the kraber squad, while Crypto was thinking about how to get rid of the full squad. Octane continued to watch out the window, which made Crypto uncomfortable. By now he'd be complaining about boredom and be asking when they could push. But here he was, seemingly okay with being a sitting duck.
"You got any ideas, Octane?" Wraith asks. It's quiet, but he mutters a short, "no" as he stays in his spot. Wraith and Crypto look at each other for a moment, sharing confused glances. Something was definitely wrong and it might screw up their game. They stared at each other, trying to get the other to go talk to Octane. They feel silly, but they end up playing a game of rock, paper, scissors.
Rock. Paper. Scissors. Shoot!
Crypto hesitates to walk over to Octane, hands stuffed in his pockets as he shuffles over. He wondered if Wraith's voices helped her, and considered to avoid playing games of chance with her until further notice.
Octane gives him a slight glance, but doesn't necessarily give him the attention he was hoping for. Crypto clears his throat, one hand reaching up to cover his mouth. This wasn't really the time for some chitchat, so he'd have to try his best to make it quick.
"Hey, uh, Octane. How's.. how's it going?" Crypto attempts to smile at him. He can imagine the awkward scrunch his mouth is doing, and has a feeling Octane can feel his anxiety. If he did, he didn't show it.
"What do you want?" Octane asks, seemingly focused on keeping an eye on the building across. That made Crypto want to walk back to Wraith and tell her he didn't want to talk, but he thought maybe he shouldn't run away too quickly for once.
"Just wanted to see how you were doing." Crypto looks out the window now, eyes following the way Bangalore peeked in and out of view.
"Oh so now you want to listen to me." Octane sighs. "Well it's too late, you were too slow."
Bloodhound briefly appears, shooting in their direction. They both manage to dodge it, but it keeps them on their toes. Octane continues to peek out the window, testing Bloodhound. They're always up for a challenge.
"I didn't mean to ignore you, and I'm-" Another bullet whizzes to the window, and Octane manages to move out of the way just in time. He peeks again, Bloodhound seemingly irritated that they missed. "I'm sorry for ignoring you earlier. I got caught up-"
"Well now that you've put it that way, it's totally cool." He dodges again.
"R-Really?" Crypto drops his guard, standing a little too close to the window.
"No. Go eat a thermite." Octane doesn't say anything as Bloodhound shoots again. He dodges, assuming the bullet is for him, but is surprised when it hits Crypto's head. The sentinel is unforgiving. The loud impact against his helmet is deafening, and his shield cracks, leaving him with about half his health.
"Ooh that looked like it hurt." Octane winced. Crypto backs away from the window and crouches down to pop a Phoenix Kit. "That's good enough for me. All is forgiven."
"You've got to be joking." Crypto mutters.
"Mhm. Actually, I'll be holding a grudge, but I can set it aside for now to make sure we win." The smug demeanor in his voice is clear. Crypto sighs.
"Plan?" Crypto asks. If he was acting like this, he had to have come up with something.
"No plan, just winging it." Octane says. Crypto glares at him, he can faintly see Octane roll his eyes behind his goggles. "Fine. We wait for Che and Señor Loin Cloth to move because of the ring. They're probably going to get stuck next to us or below us."
Crypto nods. Wraith doesn't say anything, but tries to get a view of Lifeline and Revenant.
"I'm going to save my EMP for either Wattson's pylon or Rampart and Sheila. Whoever we end up fighting." Crypto says.
"The moment you set it off, that's when we jump pad in! Maybe Wraith could do an emergency port, I dunno. If we disengage, well, you know I'll be out of there first." Octane says with glee.
"You're awfully proud to state that you run away." Wraith teases, crossing her arms.
"Running is what I'm best at doing. Whether that's into them or away!" Octane's energy is buzzing, almost contagious. Crypto realizes how much of it was missing through the game, and how he spent more time being confused and anxious than actually feeling confident about what he was doing.
Crypto knows that Octane sees him chuckle. He covers his mouth when he realizes the goggled man is facing him, and he can feel his stare. Crypto wished he was in one of his masked outfits now, feeling betrayed by his genuine affinity for the man. Octane turns away fairly quickly, going back to observing from the window.
Crypto decides to drone again. He feels ashamed for getting too distracted, there was only 30 seconds left before the next ring. Lifeline and Revenant were finally making a move towards them, while the other two squads were fighting each other from the doorways and windows.
Crypto leaves his drone outside, waiting for confirmation that Lifeline and Revenant have reached their building. He's caught off guard when he closes his interface and hears Bangalore's ultimate go off. It's right on top of them.
The missiles scatter across the top of the building a bit beyond, right into the river. Then, they go off, taking away their doors. Near them, there's the noise of shields getting damaged.
"They're close." Wraith says. They get scanned. Bloodhound's heavy breathing echoes from outside as they get closer. Their footsteps get near the left side of the building before moving towards the back, right where Lifeline and-
There's a flurry of bullets below the building. Lifeline gets downed. Revenant totems in a panic. Octane is bouncing on his metal toes, itching to join the fight.
"We just gotta GO!" He shouts. Suddenly, there's shots flying at him from the window. He's quick to return the fire to Bangalore, who's trying to push in with Bloodhound. They manage to force each other to back up, shields needing replenishment.
"I'm getting hit over here!" Wraith shouts, Revenant appearing in the doorway. Crypto isn't quite sure why he's pushing them, but he assumes he's confused about who's in what squad. He runs over to try and give her some support when Revenant gets sent back to the totem. A few seconds pass and Bloodhound finishes him off, the chime of elimination loud.
"The champion has been eliminated." The announcer's voice rings out. "There is a new kill leader."
The kill feed shows that Bloodhound now has 7 kills. Crypto chews at the inside of his cheek.
"¡Vámonos!" Octane shouts and he's out the back door. A couple mastiff shots, and Bloodhound is down. Crypto is running out to him, knowing this wasn't a moment to celebrate. Octane excitedly kicks at Bloodhound's helmet.
"This is no time for a fini-" Bangalore was on Octane's trail, but one glance at Crypto and she's switched targets. He's already at half shields when he reacts, R301 challenging her Flatline. It is a tough call as he manages to break her shields. Octane manages to get his finisher off just as Wraith appears, giving Crypto backup. He tries to move back into the building to get some cover and heal up. Just as Wraith knocks Bangalore, Wattson is on the offensive. Her Volt rips into Wraith, but Crypto focuses on healing up. Octane would do something.
"I've been downed!" Wraith shouts over the comms, but there's a rapid burst of a hemlock finishing her off. Rampart. Crypto had forgotten about the other team. They had zipped up to the top of the middle tower, getting a rough angle on the two squads.
"Ouch! That hurt! Another squad is attacking us-" Octane cries, as the hemlock drills into him. He fails to grab Wraith's banner, and tries to rush back into the building as Wattson is left to deal with Rampart.
Crypto uses a battery, hoping he can get it off before they inevitably get pushed again. He watches Octane heal up in a corner as Wattson picks up Bangalore. They could push but- It was too late. She was up, and Rampart was keeping a steady eye.
"Wraith…" Crypto sulks. It seemed impossible to pull off the rez, but if he could just grab her banner…it was worth a shot. He got back in his drone, hovering past Bangalore as she heals. He grabs Wraith's banner right as his drone gets destroyed again. Rampart was going to be a force to be reckoned with.
There were 45 seconds left on the clock. Round 5 was going to be tough. Crypto and Octane were effectively sandwiched between some of the toughest people to deal with in the final circle. The sound of fences being set up outside, and the zipline being used was loud. Pathfinder and Rampart return to the large building as more of it was in the upcoming ring. Rampart proceeds to set down more shields. Could they really get away with just winging it? Crypto stares at Octane for a moment, observing the way the masked man checked his inventory. When Octane seems to pay attention to his surroundings again, he catches Crypto's gaze.
"What?" Octane asks, reloading his Mastiff. Crypto averts his gaze, feeling some shame at getting caught staring.
"Is it worth respawning Wraith?" He looks at the respawn beacon outside. The green hologram of the drop ship spins around, almost taunting him. "I don't want her to just die again."
"Mmm. I mean, we could use her as bait." Octane cocks his head, almost playfully, as if he wasn't suggesting killing her again to create a distraction. He must see Crypto's sour expression when he sighs. "Lighten up amigo, she's gonna be hanging out at the med bay either way."
"We might too if things don't go our way." Crypto makes sure his weapons are reloaded and takes stock of his meds. He was lucky he still had a shield battery along with some small heals. His ammo was lower than he'd like, and he only had one 'nade left, but he could make do.
They were going to be just barely in the ring. They'd have to leave the safety of their building next ring, and probably hold the bottom of the large building where Path and Rampart currently resided. However, as this upcoming ring closed, it was likely they'd have to face Bangalore and Wattson. Everyone was antsy to avoid a third party at this point. Unless they were the one being the third party, no one wanted to be a part of the first two. Crypto shifts in his spot, listening for any disturbances.
"THERE'S A DISTINCT LACK OF SHEILA!" It was usually difficult to hear Rampart out on the battlefield, but the eerie quiet and canyon walls make her voice boom. The whirring of Sheila is unmistakable, and the red laser cheekily glares at him from the glass window. A looming threat just waiting for him and Octane to step outside.
"This is gonna be fun." Octane bounces in place, psyching himself up. They make what feels like eye contact. "10 seconds left. It's showtime."
Crypto tries his best to chalk up his racing heart to the anxiety of the upcoming battle. Tries is the keyword. The way he fumbles over saying he was keeping an eye on the door towards the back of the building leaves him flustered. He was hopeful the daredevil wouldn't notice. Octane doesn't say anything so he assumes he's in the clear for now. It was difficult to assess just how observant he was, or if he even cared sometimes. Was he even paying attention to Crypto's delivery? Did he notice the way his face reddened? But if he did, does he even care? He felt like a fool, even if there was no reason to.
"Ring Movement in Progress." The announcer says, reminding Crypto to stay vigilant.
There's a faint silhouette of someone near the door Crypto watches. Wattson. The way the top of the pylon sticks out from her shoulders is a giveaway. He takes a few shots when she peeks too far, causing her to scurry out of his line of sight. He can hear another pair of feet tread on the roof before a flurry of bullets stops their movement. He can imagine Bangalore crouched behind the crates on top of the building, desperate for cover from the monster that is Sheila. Rampart laughs as the gun blares, bullets keeping Bangalore and Wattson cornered. They're right on the edge of the ring, but it'd be just as difficult to try and get in the building that Crypto and Octane were holding.
The distinct sound of smoke canisters getting launched helps Crypto assume Bangalore and Wattson were on the move. While Rampart and Sheila continued to wreak havoc outside, Bangalore and Wattson seemed to get into cover. Crypto sneaks a peak out of the window, frowning when he realizes Wattson took the spot he was hoping to get, the left side underneath the large building. She's quick to set up her pylon and fences, and the loud hum of electricity seems to be the only sound left. Rampart was either reloading, or had lost sight of the two.
All he had to do now was time his EMP correctly, and they could push Wattson and Bangalore. However, Octane had a different plan. Crypto realizes the other man left the building and climbed onto the roof. He can't help but make a frustrated groan, wondering what he was up to now. Sheila whirrs back to life as Octane tries to get a few shots on Rampart. It's a fruitless endeavor as he runs across the wooden plank, taking cover in a loot bin to give himself the opportunity to heal up.
"야, what do you think you're doing?" Crypto grumbles over the comms.
"Do you trust me, compadre?" Octane asks.
Crypto is quiet for a second.
"...no."
Now Octane is quiet, before he hears a chuckle over the comms.
"I'm gonna jump pad to them. You wanna do your ult or something?" The sound of Octane reloading his weapons distracts him for a second.
"But what about-"
"This is getting boring. Let's have some fun." Octane sets down his jump pad.
"씨발. This is so stupid." Crypto says as he gets into his drone. He avoids the shots from both teams as he hovers in between them. Might as well kill two birds with one stone. "Rebooting the system."
The EMP is so loud, but the destruction of equipment is even louder. Octane jumps away, onto the roof of the big building. The echoes of shields cracking makes Crypto feel confident as he climbs onto the roof. It was nice to get his red evo. He watches as Pathfinder struggles to escape Octane, his sluggish movements leaving him vulnerable. Sheila, now ineffective, causes Rampart to panic. She struggles to get off of Sheila in time. Wattson and Bangalore don't seem to leave their oasis.
He uses a shield cell before bouncing onto the roof. He lands right next to Octane, who manages to down Pathfinder. His health is low, but he's trying to pull off another finisher. Rampart has recovered from the EMP and pushes Octane. Crypto feels fear as she aims for him. He reacts too late. Octane is down.
"I'm down! ¡No bueno!" Octane growls. Crypto feels a jolt of anxiety as he shoots at Rampart. His R301 is forgiving. Even though he misses a couple shots at first, he manages to break her shields. She hits him with the same power, hemlock leaving him shattered, with a few extra hits to his health. He takes some cover behind a box, watching as she tries to put a cover up. He's quick to shoot at it, blowing it to bits. He uses his shield battery, hearing her shield up. And then he hears another pair of feet behind him, and he doesn't know what to do anymore.
"It'll be alright, amigo. You've got this." Octane says over comms. It was all Octane's fault, this mess. And yet, his words made Crypto feel confident. He turns to get a couple shots on Bangalore, just enough to make her hesitate. She backs up while popping a cloud of smoke in her wake.
Rampart is trying to put up another cover, but Bangalore throws a grenade, the cover blowing up as it takes the damage. Crypto just knows she's frustrated.
He wishes his drone had been out, or that he had a digi-threat. The smoke was unbearable. He decides to push Rampart, not knowing what would be the best play. The smoke isn't too bad near her, but he can hear the sound of shield cells being used. He rounds the corner and the double-tap eats at her shields. She's caught off guard, gun not yet out of her holster. She jumps off the building, trying to get cover underneath. Crypto gets another shot on her before she's out of sight. He grumbles about how low her health was.
"Nap time's over!" Octane yells. Crypto is caught off guard seeing him stand up behind him. He's quick to start healing up.
"You had a self-rez? I didn't even realize-" He was about to further complain when there's a loud rattling of guns beneath the building. Rampart had fallen at the hands of Wattson, and now it was a 2v2. Octane uses a Phoenix kit, and Crypto keeps a lookout. They were at a standstill again. Crypto didn't have his ult so that was a drawback. He curses at how he didn't pick up an ultimate accelerant when he should have earlier. He really thought the respawn beacon was worth it.
"Respawn beacon…" Crypto whispers. He's quick to pull it out and set it down.
"Why now? The game is almost over." Octane takes a turn in keeping a lookout for any movements from below.
"Maybe Wraith can make a good distraction for Natalie…" Crypto hums as he waits for the beacon to land.
"Tch. And you acted like I was so cruel earlier!" Octane takes a few shots at Wattson when she peeks.
"I think I take back what I said about not trusting you. Well, only a little." Crypto says as the beacon lands in front of him. He turns away from the beacon as he hears footsteps rushing up, along with the rustle of clothes as they climb. "빨리빨리. Get ready."
Wattson is the first one up. They both fire at her, and she's down pretty quickly. Octane took a bit of damage from her, but Bangalore hesitates to climb up. Instead, she enters the building. Octane is running in, trying to ensure Bangalore can't get away. Wattson tries to crawl down to her, struggling to get in through the doorway. The door was gone, but an amped cover meant Wattson couldn't get through. However, she does a good job of tripping Octane, and he's stuck in sight of Bangalore just long enough to give her an opening. She breaks the rest of his shields and he’s alarmed, running back to the safety of the roof.
Crypto is on the move to try and get into the building. He gets to one of the doorways in the middle of the building, contemplating to kick through the blockage of the door and amped wall.
"This is such a waste of time-" He grunts as he starts to kick at the door. Bangalore is on the other side, pre-aiming at him. He stops mid-way. This was too risky with the amped shield still functioning. He curses. It seems like he missed the right side of the building because he got so caught up in trying to take down Watton's fences too.
Octane is healed up when he rushes to another entrance. He's trying his best to kick down the door behind him. He watches the dismay on Bangalore's face as she struggles to choose what door to focus on. She moves away from the door, but has enough visual to aim at both of them if she needs to.
Crypto feels a surge of confidence. It was a mistake to underestimate Bangalore, but he had a feeling that with Octane, they might win this difficult battle. She was a tough opponent, but they still had the advantage. Crypto gets into his drone and flies it back to the broken door past Wattson. It easily glides through the opening above the cover, and it flies towards her just as Octane rushes in.
She focuses on the drone all too quickly. It's destroyed.
"미안해." He whispers to it, a bit sad to use it as a distraction. But it seems to work when Octane gets some good shots in as Crypto finally breaks the amped cover in his way. Bangalore is as calm as ever, with only a panicked stray shot here and there. Her R99 is powerful, leaving Octane with no shields when Crypto is there to back him up. He fires at her with no mercy, and he watches as she crumbles to the ground.
The victory music plays. "A winner has been appointed." The announcer echoes over the speakers. Crypto throws down his holospray as Octane cheers while shooting his gun at the ceiling.
"Heh. GG." Crypto smirks. The camera whirrs around him. He watches the banner screen outside as he, Wraith, and Octane are superimposed on the champion's podium.
"You are the Apex Champions." The announcer states. Crypto manages to compliment Octane before the dropship lands, prompting them to board the noisy ship. It's a quiet ride back to the legends compound. As per standard, the two of them head to the med bay as soon as possible to check on Wraith.
She never seemed to get too injured. She was still talking to a nurse when they arrived. They wrap up their conversation quickly, and Wraith turns to them with a frown.
"And here I thought I was going to have to deal with being used as bait." She crosses her bandaged arm over her non-injured one.
"Sorry. Just thought they'd push seeing the beacon." Crypto is shameful as he bows his head slightly, avoiding eye contact.
"Well, the important thing is that it worked right?" Octane chimes in. "Glad to see you're not hurt too bad, amigo."
Wraith blinks in surprise before she nods. She looks between them before a small smile appears on her face.
"I guess you're right." She sighs. "Pull that again in the middle of a match though and I'll have to throw you into the void."
"No thank you!" Octane yelps. Crypto and Wraith laugh. They all make their way back to the living area of the compound, talking about the best and worst moments in the game.
"Without your portal I would've been toast!" Octane cheers, leaving Wraith to mumble a flattered, "It's nothing."
They say goodbye to Wraith, whose room is one of the first ones in the hall. Being the newbies, Octane and Crypto's rooms were further down. They walk side-by-side, footsteps at an even pace.
"That was awesome!" Octane shouts as his arm slings around Crypto's shoulder. Crypto jolts at the sudden contact, and Octane quickly pulls away. "Sorry, you don't really like being touched, do you?"
"Just caught me off guard." Crypto mumbles. They reach their respective rooms and Crypto fishes his keycard out of his pocket. "We almost lost."
"But we didn't, because we fought and you didn't just sit in your drone." Octane is leaning against the wall next to the door of his room. When Crypto turns to look at him, he feels anger burn at the back of his throat.
Crypto didn't mean to grab at Octane's shirt collar. He didn't mean to push him against the wall. He didn't mean for the anger to die down as he got close to him. He didn't mean to just stare at Octane, wondering what the hell he was doing starting a fight with his teammate, who also happened to be his crush.
There's a moment of stillness, as Crypto reflects. His hands loosen and he begins to move away.
"Coward." Octane snides. Crypto growls, hands gripping harder at the shirt fabric.
"What do you want from me?" Crypto almost shouts, but he doesn't want to be angry at Octane. His feelings were in disarray. He was starting to get upset with himself for acting like this.
"Oooh, you wanna kiss me so bad." Octane mocks as his hand reaches to pull down his mask. He puckers his lips in an exaggerated manner, making smooching sounds.
"Wait- what? No I don't!" Crypto feels sweat on his temple and his palms.
"Oh. Did I misread you? Nevermind then, let me go." Octane grimaced, hands up in defeat.
"Do...do you want me to kiss you?"
"..." They stare at each other for a moment. Crypto is about to let him go, but very quietly Octane responds. "...yes."
There's a hesitation when Crypto leans in. It's Octane who hastily crashes their mouths together, hands reaching for the back of Crypto's neck. Octane's goggles bump awkwardly against the bridge of his nose, but kissing him was worth the discomfort. They kiss feverishly for a couple minutes, before they're panting and catching their breath.
There's another silence between them. There's a part of Crypto that yearns for more affection, but there is another part that feels guilty for acting upon such half-hearted feelings. After all, it's not like he truly liked Octane in a romantic sense. Or at least that's what he thought. He just acted on impulse after seeing him be so cute-
"Dude, you think waaaayyy too much." Octane says, and Crypto realizes he's been zoning out for a bit. He finally notices he's just been staring at Octane and the other man seems a bit uncomfortable, possibly flustered.
"I don't think we should be doing this." Crypto let's go of him, and moves away. He wipes his sweaty hands on his pants and sighs.
"Why? Did you dislike it?" There's an edge to Octane's tone that Crypto picks apart. Do you dislike me?
"No- But I'm-" Crypto balls his hands into tight fists.
"An anxious dork who's got a mysterious past and is an asshole most of the time? Yeah. But I'm okay with that." Crypto doesn't know whether he should be offended or happy with such a statement.
"I'm not an asshole." Crypto grunts, and crosses his arms. "Look, Octane, maybe you have a better idea of me than I thought but I don't think I genuinely like you."
"Ooh, harsh. Okay." Octane grimaced.
"No I mean like- you're a cool person, I guess and I like being around you but, I don't think my feelings for you are true." Crypto feels himself getting flustered as he gestures his hands as he talks, trying to make what he was saying sound better than it actually did.
"This is getting worse-" Octane looks dejected now, Crypto thinks he's about to leave.
"I just- I just think...its a misattribution of arousal." Crypto watches as Octane cocks his head to the side.
"What the hell does that mean?"
"That I spend so much time in dangerous situations with you, I've mistaken my emotions for love." There's a beat of silence.
"But being in dangerous situations with you is why I like you."
"What?" Crypto's eyebrows scrunch in confusion.
"We always figure a way out of them. Well. Most of the time. But being able to do wild things with you...there's no better feeling than surviving and the adrenaline when we rush in." Octane pauses for a second, observing Crypto. "Do you...dislike that time with me?"
"I like being with you Octane, but, maybe we're mistaking our feelings-" Crypto starts.
"I'm not mistaken on my end. Look, compadre, if you don't like me just say it, and we'll end things here. I'll stop dragging you in when we fight and you can just sit around on your dumb drone all game or something." Octane grumbles.
"...and if I like you? Then what will we do?" Crypto averts his eyes and he rubs at his arm.
"I dunno. Make-out again? Brag about being boyfriends and win more games as an ultimate duo?" Octane gets a little quiet. "I honestly wouldn't care as long as we could be happy, together."
Crypto doesn't know why that almost brings him to tears. All he knows is his body moves before his mouth does. He gently grabs Octane by the wrist. They stare at each other again for a moment.
"I think I just fell in love with you." Crypto mumbles out.
"Dude, you're so slow. Keep up with me." Octane laughs.
They kiss again, but this time it's soft and slow. Octane doesn’t admit he enjoys it, but Crypto gets the feeling he does.