Dimensions Collide: Destiny Bond

Ah… wait a minute. Loss. Technically, it was possible, right? John had lost before. If it were someone with his abilities…

He could feel his heart pounding inside his chest, stress causing his body to tense up. Sweat dripped down his cheek, but he couldn’t bring his hand up to wipe it away. He hadn’t seen this coming. He had never envisioned himself in a scenario where he would lose. Where he’d be so terribly cornered that he would have no way out.

Someone else having his abilities wasn’t supposed to be part of the story.

“Stop. Don’t come. It’s not worth it.”

He wanted to yell those things out loud, to get the message to them somehow, but even if he could, what was the point? He’d be stuck here, and then he’d eventually die, and then he’d [Reset].

But… something was nagging at him. He’d always maintained that [Resets] would stop working at some point. He’d always assumed that he’d have fair warning and would be able to prepare accordingly, but what if that wasn’t true? What if [Resets] stopped working, right now, with no warning?

What would he do then?

“John!” Fate yelled as he kicked the door down.

The group came piling in one after another. Fate, then Prota, then Danjo, all ready to battle. However, their tension vanished as they saw that there was nothing in the room. Just John on the cross, Olivia chained to the ground, and a single frail man standing with his back to them.

“John!” Prota cried out.

Danjo also stepped forward. “O-Olivia? Is that you-”

Fate put his arm out. “You two. Remember. This isn’t the time to act irrationally.”

Despite his words, a strange anger burned in his eyes. His hands were shaking as he held his sword in front of him.

“You! You’re the one known as Doctor, right? You’ve done way too much. It’s time to pay for your sins. There’s no one else here. You can’t possibly defeat all of us.”

Doctor started clapping slowly as he turned around at a casual pace.

“Bravo! Bravo! You’ve done it! You, the good guys, have broken into my lair and slain my underlings. I’m alone and helpless. You’ve won.”

He finally faced the group, a smirk on his face. Prota and Danjo were still eyeing their loved ones, but Fate’s reaction was completely unexpected. His sword fell out of his hands, the sound of metal echoing through the silent room as he saw Doctor’s face. His body went stiff as if he’d seen a ghost.

“You… no, that’s not possible. You can’t be here. That’s not possible.”

“Me? Oh, do we know each other?” Doctor said, his eyes widening. “Mm… there aren’t many people who know me, though.”

“You… you’re the medic. You’re that psycho. You…”

“The medic… ah, I see now. There aren’t any in this world that would call me by that name.”

Doctor clasped his hands together and smiled. “You were one of the rats at the military base, weren’t you?”

John raised his eyes. It wasn’t exactly surprising, but it was definitely interesting to see someone with such a close connection to Fate so early on. Regardless, neither of them were paying attention to him, so his reaction went unnoticed.

“What a coincidence. For us to meet in another world… but which one are you?”

“Sixteen,” Fate growled, bending down to pick up his sword, never breaking eye contact with Doctor. “That was my callsign.”

“Sixteen… oh, yes. You showed the most potential of them all. It’s a shame you died protecting your teammates. I thought we drilled survival into you. You weren’t supposed to form bonds. That girl. I hope she got what was coming to her. She was the one that corrupted you, after all.”

“Fate?” Danjo whispered. “What’s he talking about?”

Fate, however, wasn’t listening. No, it would’ve been more appropriate to say that he couldn’t listen. His vision unfocused, his eyes trembling as his vision went red. He could hear his breath, his pants heavy as he reached down, picking up his blade. His knuckles went white as he gripped his blade, his entire body shaking with rage as he put all his energy into staring at the opponent in front of him.

“She was a friend. She was family. You don’t deserve to even think of her.”

“She was trash, and she died like trash. You all died pointless, meaningless deaths.”

“Shut up!”

Fate’s eyes lit up as he clenched his teeth, his rage completely overtaking him.

“I’ll kill you. I’ll tear you to pieces, here and now.”

With a terrifying cry, he ran forward, brandishing his blade high above his head. He swung time after time, but Doctor dodged with ease, barely avoiding the attacks every time. There was no tension in his face. He was playing with Fate as a cat toys with a mouse.

Danjo immediately fled to the furthest part of the room, trying his best to survive, but Prota joined in, firing spells as best she could. Unfortunately, the room itself was her natural enemy. With such a small space, she’d never be able to fire off large spells for fear of hitting John, who had the body of a normal human. Thus, the best she could do was hit Doctor with small fireballs and icicles, but they were about as effective as a slingshot against a fortress wall.

It was strange. Doctor looked so frail and weak, yet he was easily dodging all the attacks. Logic had gone out the window. There was no sticking to the plan anymore. Everything they’d been taught about control. About finishing it here. About not letting emotions get to them.

All of that had gone out the window. The only thought in everyone’s mind was getting what they wanted. About claiming what was theirs.

“This ends here!” Fate roared, blinded with rage, as he held his blade with two hands. The next strike ripped through the walls, tearing the room to shreds, yet Doctor remained unharmed.

“Ah, you’re still the same as always, Sixteen. Headstrong. Ambitious. Yet utterly blind, still playing the role of the pawn in a larger game of chess.”

Fate swung, and Doctor easily sidestepped, grabbing Fate’s wrist in the process. He lifted and swung Fate like a rag doll, throwing him into the wall, shattering what tiles hadn’t already been destroyed. A spurt of blood emerged from Fate’s mouth as he fell to the floor, trembling as he struggled to get up.

“It seems a lesson is in order.”

He walked toward Fate, withdrawing a scalpel from his coat. It wasn’t anything strange or violent. It was just an ordinary scalpel, just like any other scalpel. Thus, Fate’s reaction upon seeing the surgical tool was bizarre. Despite his best efforts, he fell back down, shaking like a baby as the enemy slowly approached him.

“No- no,” he gasped, trying to clutch onto his sword but desperately failing to even hold the handle.

“That’s the thing with you bugs,” Doctor sighed. “You can’t get over your traumas. An illogical move. You have no control over your own mind. Realistically, you should know that this cannot do anything to you. Hah. Very well. A reformation is in order. It’ll be the same as before. Time for treatment.”

His steps echoed throughout the room, barely audible as he inched closer and closer to Fate. The atmosphere had gone from violent to deadly quiet in a heartbeat.

“Ready?”

Doctor’s moment never came. A fireball knocked him off his feet, interrupting his plans.

“You.” Doctor slowly turned to Prota, a wide smile stretching onto his face. “I have yet to get to you. Honestly, after seeing Sixteen, I forgot. You. You almost didn’t come. I need you the most. You have no idea how valuable you are.”

Prota saw the look in the man’s eyes and shuddered. It was the look she’d received all the time. Those eyes. In them, she was nothing more than an object, something to be thrown around. Doctor didn’t need her. He just needed her body. A year of trauma came flashing back, overcoming her.

Prota’s mind was falling apart. Despite her sudden burst of clarity, she still couldn’t shake the feeling of despair. Those eyes. They pierced her core, took her apart and saw her as something inhuman. They tore her apart from the inside, breaking her, telling her that she was nothing more than trash. Garbage. Something to be beaten, tortured and killed.

In a flash, she was transported back to the streets. A time where the world itself wanted to kill her. There was only one solution. Back to her shell she went. The only place of safety she knew.

“I need your soul. Soul Steal. You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment. Once I get your soul out of your stupid flesh, I’ll have it all! I’ll have all I need-”

Fate didn’t wait for Doctor to finish his speech and charged, but it was futile. Doctor didn’t even need to turn his head to block Fate’s blow. His body was still ridiculously weak, his muscles lax as he struggled to overcome his fears.

“You need to learn how to stay down. Bad children don’t act unless spoken to.”

Another tendril came out of Doctor’s coat and flung Fate away, blood splattering as Fate fell once more. Suddenly, the sound of chains clanking interrupted everyone as Danjo fiddled with Olivia’s binds. They’d fallen to the ground after coming undone, but neither Danjo nor Olivia had expected the sound to be so loud.

“Danjo, run!” Olivia yelled as her collar came off. “I’ll-”

“You. Code five.”

Danjo stopped moving.

“Don’t let your sister escape. If she moves, kill yourself.”

Danjo silently took his gauntlets off his sack and equipped them, priming them at his own head.

“Danjo?” Fate yelled. “But- I checked! I made sure! Why are you-”

Doctor laughed despicably. “You checked, did you? All this time. I knew you fools were coming. I knew who was coming. Albert, the one person who might be able to do anything, was taken care of. Breaker, my untrusting subordinate, was also taken care of. Sixteen! You were playing in the palm of my hands, as always! Did you really think you could win?”

Fate’s head dropped, laying on the ground as a pool of blood slowly formed underneath him.

“But… no, there’s no way…”

The room was filled with Doctor’s laughter. Everything was falling apart.

Olivia, frozen with fear as she watched her brother lifeless prepare to take his own life. Fate’s mind and body had been shattered by a singular man who’d overpowered him in both his lives. Prota, traumatized by the ghosts of her past and was needed for the thing that she’d carried her whole life.

Despair. Injected into everyone’s blood by a singular man. Everyone was frozen.

Except John.

“Ugh… this isn’t a clever play at all. I don’t know why Doctor is pretending to be smart- oh, right. The [Author] couldn’t come up with anything intelligent. Doctor will only ever be as smart as that motherfucker is.” John sighed. “Fate. Your lie detection ability. Do you know specifically how it works?”

His voice was the same as always. Mildly annoyed, maybe, but otherwise calm.

“Wh- what?”

“Fate. Your ability. Does it check the ‘absolute truth?’ Or does it check that the target ‘believes what they’re saying?’ Do you even know?”

“I-”

“I’m gonna assume it’s the latter, then. Good to know.”

John was inwardly shaking his head. Doctor was just sitting there, listening. John wasn’t sure if this was just lazy writing or Doctor’s arrogance, but whatever the reason, he wouldn’t complain this time. The only thing he could do right now was yap, and yap away he would.

“Fate. Seriously. You’re better than this. Right?”

Fate struggled to his feet. His mask was cracked and chipped, revealing blood trickling down his mouth.

“Come on. Get back up.”

Fate used his sword as a cane and propped himself up, trembling. Slowly, he reached up and wiped his mouth, his eyes glaring at his opponent.

“Fate. Are you really gonna get knocked down by something this easy? You beat a chimera alone. You’re a hero. You need to take your revenge. You can’t die yet.”

John watched as the [Protagonist] of the [Story] grew in front of his eyes. This was it. Right. The growth of the main character. Unrelenting in the face of death. Exponential growth in times of need.

Fate turned to Doctor and raised his sword.

Doctor’s grin faded from his face. “Seriously. You people are no fun. If you get knocked down, you should learn to stay down. Although… no, no, this is better. Right. This is how it should be.”

The grin returned. “Struggle for me.”

A flurry of tendrils erupted from his coat, all directed at Fate. It was a completely one sided fight. Fate was holding on, but just barely. He would deflect five attacks, but the sixth would get through, nicking his leg. He could dodge ten, but the eleventh would land. Through it all, Doctor’s calm face taunted them.

But Fate was holding on. He was fighting back, and he wasn’t dead. Not yet.

“That’s it! Struggle for me!”

“I won’t stop!” Fate roared. “I’ll keep going until I win. You can’t keep getting away with this!”

“Oh? But I can. And I will.”

Doctor cackled as he continued the onslaught, completely focusing on Fate.

“Prota!” John yelled. He’d gotten one fighting force back into action. He needed to get another.

Prota’s eyes snapped open. That voice. It was familiar. Who…?

“Are you just gonna lie there?”

Right. It was familiar. John. She wanted something. What did she want?

“Get up!”

Right. She was here for John.

“Are you going to let this slimy bastard walk all over you? What are you here for?!”

Protect. Right. She was here to rescue John.

Reaching into every reserve of mental strength she had, she sent her tendrils out and reached for Doctor’s mana, but there was none. There was only something else. A foreign energy. It felt penetrable, but… she was scared. She hesitated. She didn’t know what to do. The lack of mana scared her.

That moment of hesitation was her downfall once more. The energy in Doctor’s core reached out and slapped her away, and her tendrils fell back as if they’d touched a hot stove.

“You… you dare?!” Doctor yelled, lashing out and knocking Prota into a wall. A handful of tendrils shot toward her and pinned her down, restraining her movement. A tendril rose up and smashed her in the face, knocking her out.

“Prota!” Fate yelled, putting all his strength into knocking away a tendril. A chance. He rushed forward, but it was futile.

Tendrils pierced through Fate’s wrists, snapping bone and flesh as they pinned him against the wall. He screamed in agony as he struggled to get back to his feet, but it was pointless.

Doctor had completely overpowered them.

“You fool! You should focus on yourself instead!” Doctor exclaimed, pinning Fate to the ground. “That’s what got you killed before! How have you not learned your lesson?”

Fate struggled, but he was helpless. Just like that, the room went silent once more. Barely a minute had passed. John’s hopes sank once more. There was no power up here. There was no Deus Ex Machina, no saving force, nothing. No power of friendship. No strength of will. Fate should be winning. But he wasn’t.

They were fighting against something that never should’ve existed in the first place.

“Manaless boy.”

John looked up.

“Don’t you see now? It’s hopeless. You, too, realize it, right? You tried, but in the end, it was futile. It’s checkmate.”

Doctor pointed to the board on the floor. It’d somehow remained untouched during the scuffle that’d gone on.

“Go on. Make your next move.”

To John’s surprise, Doctor undid his binds. John rubbed his wrists and ankles, sore from being bound for several days. He was surprised that there were no further complications.

Doctor indicated for John to step forward.

John did so, looking around the room. Fate, pinned to the wall, writhing in pain as his wrist was pierced. His eyes were looking at John, pleading for him to do something, but there was nothing John could do.

He looked over at Prota, who was still knocked out. John closed his eyes. What was he supposed to do? [Reset] while he still could? Fight back?

He opened his eyes and looked to his left. Danjo was still as lifeless as before, but there was true fear in Olivia’s eyes. She couldn’t help but shake as she stared at her younger brother, holding a weapon to his own head.

“I’m sorry,” John said calmly.

He was. If he’d played his pieces a bit better, or if he’d predicted things just a bit more accurately… well, that was what [Resets] were for, right? He hated to admit it, but defeat was defeat. There was nothing he could do about it. With that understanding, the pride in him was gone. He shook his head. Why had he felt such a way? How had he let such a foolish thing affect him? His motto was efficiency. This was clearly not efficient. The stress in his body melted away. Right. [Resets] weren’t gone yet. He was being paranoid about something that had yet to happen.

Go back. Consequences didn’t exist for someone like him. Right. Why was he scared?

“Here,” John sighed, making a move. He was stalling. It was the move that would help him survive the longest. A small part of him was still stubborn. Still proud.

“And you know, don’t you?” Doctor grinned, using a tendril to make the next move. “It’s checkmate.”

“I’ve got a few more moves left.”

“But even you know that it’s nothing more than a hopeless struggle. Why not surrender?”

“Why not play?” John countered.

“It’s good manners to surrender in a losing position,” Doctor pointed out.

“You don’t look like the guy to care about manners.”

“I’m actually quite polite. Why would someone like me be a vulgar barbarian? Intelligence is what makes us, manaless boy.”

John looked at the board and made his next move. Doctor’s move was made no more than half a second later. There was a clear path he saw. There was no need for him to think about it.

“Again. Give up. There’s nothing you can do here. I’ll admit that you show remarkable persistence, but that’s all you have. And I can see it. You don’t want to lose your friends, do you? You claim otherwise, but you’re afraid to lose them. You don’t want to see them die.”

John flinched and looked up at the board. Was it true? He didn’t want them to die? Fate. Danjo. Were they even his friends?

…friends. John didn’t know. But in a sudden burst of emotion, he decided that he didn’t want to lose. Even if Fate and Danjo weren’t his friends, there was Prota. And even though she would come back, he didn’t want her to die. Not after he’d told her to live. Not after he’d stayed alive all this time.

John knew. His actions weren’t logical. They weren’t good for the story. He was just doing whatever the fuck he wanted, acting in irrational ways. It didn’t flow well. It didn’t make sense. Give up. Try. Emotion. No emotion. His entire [Character] was messed up. He was weak, ridiculously so, and yet was at the same time infinitely powerful. He wasn’t a [Protagonist] nor an [Antagonist]. He had no character development. His actions and thoughts often conflicted. He didn’t care to pay that close attention to the things around him. He had no moral code. No sense of justice. No drive.

As a [Character], there was nearly no positive traits about him.

But he was more than just a [Character]. Unexplainable. Unpredictable.

Human.

“What can I do? Nothing,” John nodded. “You’re right.”

“Then give up-”

In one fluid movement, John pulled his gun out. Time seemed to slow down as his thumb pulled the hammer down, a small click indicating that the weapon was primed. He felt the cool metal of the trigger under his finger and pulled.

The sound of the gun firing brought time back to its natural flow, and Doctor was forced to block. The surprise factor of the attack was enough for Doctor to lose his grip for just a second, but it was enough.

Fate ripped the tendrils out of his wrists and downed a health potion, quickly bringing him back from the brink of death. The pain of being pinned to the wall had woken him up, driving him back through the power of rage and frustration. His mind was sharp now, focused on one thing.

“Danjo! Olivia! Move!” John yelled as Doctor’s hold over Danjo was lost.

Danjo jolted as if he’d been woken up from a deep sleep.

“Wh- where-”

“Danjo, let’s go!”

Olivia pulled her brother toward the exit.

Doctor snarled as Fate continued to parry attack after attack. “You insects need to stop struggling? Why fight? You’ve lost!”

Fate shook his head. “Never.”

He stared his old enemy in the face. Whether in this life or the past, he had to settle it. His fears. His demons.

But he didn’t know what to do. This was completely different to any fight he’d ever been in. When was the last time he’d fought against an opponent that outclassed him so much? It seemed that this man would hold control over him no matter where he went.

“I don’t need you, Sixteen. You were never needed. Your skill may be better than that of the others, but ultimately your soul is useless.”

Doctor lashed out again, but Fate deflected attack after attack. He felt the blood coursing through his body, the shift in pressure changing as the tendrils approached him. He could feel his blade cutting into the mysterious material the tendrils were made of, his feet aware of every subtle change in the floor he was standing on.

He was afraid. His body was shaking, holding him back, but his mind was set. He had to do this. John had given him an opportunity, and he would take it. Behind him, Danjo was struggling to get out, his body refusing to listen to him. Fate had to hold on.

“I’ll finish this!” Fate yelled, charging forward. He saw it. An opening. He could end it here.

John watched as he felt a hope rising in his chest. This was it. They could win. Right. They had to win. Fate thrust his sword toward Doctor, the blade plunging toward the man’s chest. Victory was in sight.

Fate was the [Protagonist], after all. That was how [Stories] went. The [Protagonist] won against the [Antagonist].

It seemed that now wasn’t the time for this, though.

A tendril slipped under Fate’s feet, tripping him up, but he never hit the floor. Doctor picked him up, then slammed him into the ceiling, then back to the floor, over and over again. The sounds of bones crunching mixed with the sound of the room being shattered as flesh was beaten and battered.

“I outclass you in every way. Give up.”

Fate was dropped, and he fell to the floor face first. His mask shattered underneath him, revealing a bruised and broken face.

“And you. Don’t think you’ve escaped.”

Doctor turned and lashed out, a tendril flying toward Danjo.

“Watch out!” John yelled, moving forward, but it was too late.

Death approached Danjo.

“No!”

Olivia leapt forward, raising her hand, but she didn’t have the strength to use magic yet. No spell came up to block Doctor’s attack, so she blocked with the only thing she had left.

Her body.

The tendril pierced through her stomach, blood dripping down as she was lifted off the floor. There was a sick dripping sound as drop after drop of blood made the pool on the ground larger and larger.

“Bah,” Doctor snarled as he pulled out.

Olivia fell to the floor, the blood splashing onto her younger brother’s face.

“O-Olivia,” Danjo stammered, getting on his knees. He was shaking, trying to do something, but unsure of what.

Doctor looked disgusted as he sent out another tendril, but John was faster. Another gunshot rang out as John fired again, but it wasn’t enough. The bullet was blocked easily. However, John’s goal was accomplished. Danjo had been left alone.

“You are being incredibly annoying,” Doctor growled as he turned to John. “But I can’t kill you. Not yet.”

Behind, though, Danjo was still holding onto Olivia.

“Hey. You… you can use your healing, right?” Danjo said, his voice breaking.

He seemed to know what was happening but didn’t want to accept it. He was smiling pathetically, holding Olivia’s hand. The room went deadly silent. Doctor remained still, seemingly allowing Danjo one moment of silence.

“R-right. I came to get you out. We’ll… we’ll escape, and-”

“Danjo.”

Olivia’s voice was soft and shaky, but it was somehow firm at the same time. She looked at John, who noticed her gaze despite Doctor’s terrifying aura. John nodded at her. His raging emotions calmed down a little. Right, that was right. Olivia was meant to die. Danjo would have a reason to fight. Danjo. He hadn’t done anything yet. According to the [Plot], this was his time to shine.

“Last words,” John mouthed. “Are you ready?”

Olivia nodded and closed her eyes.

“I’ve… I wanted to watch you grow up. I wanted to see what you’d create. But I don’t think that can happen now. But… Danjo. I know you’ll create amazing things. You’re my little artificer.”

“No, we can escape. That’s what we’ve been working for. We… we can go back to normal! We can-”

“Danjo. You have to accept it. Go on. Danjo. I… I was selfish. I raised you for myself. Because it brought me joy. It’s time for you to find your own life. Go, be the greatest artificer the world has ever seen. Be happy. You’ve made wonderful friends.”

“No! No, I can’t-”

“I love you, Danjo.”

Olivia reached up, her hand trembling as she brushed Danjo’s cheek. Streaks of red remained as tears poured down the dwarf’s face as he held her hand to his face, shaking.

“Olivia, you- no, no. I can’t do it. I’m scared. I can’t do it alone, you have to stay with me! You have to be here, you can’t leave now, I’ll-”

“Danjo.” Olivia’s voice was weak. “I’m sorry.”

Her eyes closed as her hand dropped to the floor. John would’ve been devastated by the scene had the hope in his chest not overridden everything else. He watched as Danjo looked up, red eyes, clenching his fists in their gauntlets.

“I’ll kill you,” he said, tears streaming down his eyes. “I’ll kill you!”

John watched in anticipation. This was it. Surely.

Danjo flew forward using his weapon’s propulsion system, fists aimed directly at Doctor’s head. It looked like they would connect. Surely. Maybe electricity had something to do with Doctor’s weakness. After all, there had to be some reason there were tasers at the tips of his weapons, right?

“Go, Danjo!” John yelled.

His hope was cut short as Doctor’s tendrils lashed out and pierced Danjo’s head, snuffing his light as one might snuff out a candle. Doctor turned to Fate, who’d downed another potion but was staring eyes wide at the two corpses on the ground. He couldn’t believe it. Two people, dead before his eyes, just like that.

However, no one was feeling worse than John. His breathing was shaky as he stared at the scenario before him. No. This wasn’t how this was supposed to play out. Olivia should’ve been sacrificed for Danjo. Danjo was supposed to grow. Fate was supposed to grow. That was how the [Story] was supposed to go. They were supposed to overcome adversity, grow and defeat the challenge in front of them. Right?

“...no,” John whispered, the word barely more than a breath.

Doctor. Doctor wasn’t just a [Character] anymore. [Deus Ex Machina] energy. It allowed John to be more than just a [Character], but what if someone else got a hold of that energy? John had never considered the possibility, but… what if Doctor was more than just an [Antagonist]? What if his role had transcended that of the [Story]?

Then he was simply more powerful than Fate. He wouldn’t lose by definition of the [Plot] because he now existed outside of it.

John had been wrong the entire time.

Doctor smirked as he saw the look of despair on John’s face.

“Your move, manaless boy.”