Crystalline Universe: Team Fortress 2/ Overwatch

The wind coursing through the void of the valley cooled Mike's back like the sound of death. The cold chilling sensation of the grim reaper's breath and the lifeless eyes of his reflection appeared in front of him. The paradox of death and life was in constant reversal as it was unclear if he was still alive or dead while looking down at his own corpse in front of him.

Suddenly awakening from his sleep, Mike sat on his bed in shock. To his side, Kadyn slept like a baby without any awareness of Mike's awakening. Slamming his face on his hands, Mike slowly took a deep breath before leaving his bed. The constant dreams about his death were coming back at him every single night after his "marriage" with Kadyn. Standing in front of the toilet's mirror, Mike looked at himself inside the mirror and thought to himself; why!

The constant fear of losing her because of his name was exploding his head day after day. The Mundy family has always been the enemy of many across its history. Now, the whole world would want his death and on top of that, he married Kadyn, who he has to protect. What about their future, what about everything that will happen, what about all the dangers that can occur. Mike was only 20 years old to this day and he would have to face situations that he never faced before.

[Mike, while knocking on the sink tub] - "Why was I called Mundy, why can't I live a normal life like all the others. I want to live with her without all this bullshit around my life. Why can't I? "

After taking a few rapid breaths, Mike wiped the few droplets of tear on his eyes and opened the tap. After washing his face with warm water, he quickly took a shower. While putting on his clothes, Mike used his crystals to lift Kadyn's blanket to cover her exposed back. The time was still very early, everyone was still asleep as Mike walked inside the almost empty hallways of the ship. Everything was quiet, except for one place; Engineer's laboratory. Dane is awake for almost all day and night.

Passing beside the medical center, Mike continued his walk toward McCree's chamber.

*In front of McCree's chamber

[Mike, while knocking on the door] - "McCree, you awake? "

[McCree] (mumbling) - "Alright, I'm coming, wait for a minute! "

All of a sudden, an object taped on Mike's shoulder.

[Mike] (unsurprised) - "Genji, you know this trick won't work every time. "

[Genji, after falling from the ceiling] - "Ah, the morning guy, so, how was your "night"? "

[Mike] (confused) - "Night...? "

[Genji] - "I mean did you, you know... did something with her? "

[Mike] (in disgust) - "Crickey, is that all you think of when you start a conversation on the first hour of the morning? "

[Genji] - "I'm not suggesting anything if you don't wanna talk about it. "

[Mike, after looking to see if someone else's around them] (in a whisper) - "Five times. "

[Genji] (surprised) - "Holy... are you for real? "

[Mike] - "Why would I lie? "

[McCree] - "You better be lying, you little bastard... talking those kinds of things in front of an old man like me. "

[Mike] - "Not my fault if you can't get laid with your small D. "

[Genji, while covering his helmet with his hands] - "Oof!!! "

[McCree] (grimly) - "I wish you were still McArthur. "

[Mike] - "Anyways, since we are all ready, we can get going. "

[Genji] - "To where? "

[Mike] - "Engineer has created a new engine as an upgrade for type-5 fighter-jets and we need to test it out."

[Genji] - "Wait, what if that thing's dangerous? "

[Mike] - "That's why we need to test it out! "

[Genji, while putting his arm on Mike's shoulder] - "I mean, if that thing blows up in the air, old man here will die an old guy who never touched a woman in his life. "

[McCree] - "I swear to God, I'm gonna kill what's left human of you, Genji. "

[Mike] - "We need to get going, there is work to do. "

[Genji, while waving to McCree] - "Right, right, let's go. "

The trio soon made their way to the hangar where a white coloured jet stood amongst the hundred of others sh.i.p.s. Dane waited patiently in front of the jet's ramp while the three of them walked toward the ship.

[Dane] - "Finally, not too soon, not too late, you guys are here. "

[Mike] - "This is the jet you were talking about? "

[Genji] - "What's so special about this jet? "

[Dane] - "The engine received a small update that should improve its performance. "

[McCree] - "Alright, less talk and get this over with. "

[Dane] - "Right, you two will note your experience while Mike drives, pretty simply done. "

While stepping inside the jet, Mike observed the structure of the ship's inside with an uneasy mind. Soon, the jet took off with the three of them inside for a test fly. The aircraft flew around the mother ship for a few turns, everything was going smoothly.

[Genji] - "I gotta say, this new engine is a true masterpiece, the flight was soo smooth and it almost felt like I am a feather drifting freely through the air. "

[McCree] - "Enough, I think I can't handle this anymore. "

[Mike] - "Airsickness? "

[McCree] - "Do you need to ask? "

Mike quickly drove the ship straight up so he could test the ship's stability in altitude rise.

[Mike] - "One last test, McCree, hang on! "

[McCree] - "Heck, I'm gonna puke before you could land this god damn thing, slow down! "

[Mike] - "Soon, stay put... "

In a flash, Mike suddenly realized that the craft was going to impact the mothership's surface. In a quick maneuver of the control switch, Mike dragged the ship to scratch belly first with the carrier's body, thus avoiding a fatal collision. Finally, the aircraft came to a stop after having its body slip through a few hundred metres across the giant cruiser's top.

*Later inside Engineer's laboratory

Dane looked at the remains of the jet in confusion while Mike and the rest stood behind him.

[Dane] - "I don't understand this! You told me that the ship was going up but instead it suddenly almost landed on the mothership's surface. "

[Mike] - "I don't think that it's your engine's problem since all of this happened in a flash and unless your jet engine has a teleportation ability, I don't even think what happened back then concern a technical mistake. "

[Dane] - "That's true but I don't understand how did this happen, it must have a cause. "

[Genji] - "Did any of us use their crystal ability during our flight? "

[McCree] - "Not me. "

[Mike] - "I did not either but other than us, no one has a crystal ability around here, right? "

[Dane] - "I only gave you guys crystals, I did not give them to anyone else. "

[Genji, while pointing at Kadyn] - "Mike, she has a crystal too, what about her? "

[Kadyn] - "I don't even have an ability, how do you want me to use mine! "

[Mike] - "No, she couldn't be the suspect, we will leave this case here for now but if any of you find a clue about today's accident, alert the rest of us right away. "

[McCree] - "Count on me. "

[Genji] - "Alright, it's dinner time already, I'll be getting lunch. "

[Mike] - "Alright, remember to watch out for any possible suspect. "

[Dane, while pointing at the jet] - "I will check on the shipwreck to see if I can find anything. "

With that said, all of them went minding their own business. While walking toward the cafeteria with McCree, Genji realized that the hallway seemed off. The usual way to the ship's dinner section requires only 3 minutes of walk time while the pair walked for 7 minutes already. As they kept their pace by continuously marching inside the hall, they soon realized that some crewmen who worked as long as this ship flew were also lost. The unusual amount of people now lost inside the ship meant that something big was happening. An object of an unknown source was causing all this pandemonium.

On Mike's side, he and Kadyn were also lost in their way to find Bernhardt. The corridors were all the same but instead lead to different places than where they usually do. The ship's crew were in total confusion while even Captain 76 was entirely indistinct.

[Mike] (talking to the communication device) - "Dane, do you read me? "

[Dane] (answer) - "Yeah, what is it? "

[Mike] - "It's the bloody chaos outta here, everyone's lost their way inside the ship. "

[Dane] - "Yeah, I heard the news, this is a dangerous situation, I need you and your team to launch an investigation on the matter. "

[Mike] - "Don't worry I'm on it. "

[Kadyn] - "Mike? "

[Mike] - "Don't worry, stay here, I'll be right back. "

With the use of his power, Mike swam through the halls of the ship until he exited from the cruiser's surface. To his shock, the mothership's entire structure was modified with weapon emplacements located where they shouldn't be, windows built where it makes no sense to be and extended pieces of the ship's structure sticking out where they should not. The entire fleet was in a complete mess.

[Mike, to the micro] - "Dane, this is very bad, something happened to the cruisers while we were talking back inside the laboratory! "

[Dane] - "I know, the internal structures of the sh.i.p.s were also in total clutter. "

[Mike] - "I need to see more... "

[Dane] - "Mike, we have a new case here! "

[Mike] - "I take that back, what is it, Dane? "

[Dane] - "People in the ship have been duplicated, some of them with a face that changed to someone else's. "

[Mike] - "What the bloody hell do you mean "duplicated"? "

[Dane] - "A guy having the face of someone else as his own. "

After hearing the explanation, Mike quickly dove back down inside the mothership and hastily took Kadyn in his arms.

[Kadyn] (in confusion) - "What's happening, Mike, why did you pick me up? "

[Mike] - "I'll explain later..." (to the micro) - "Dane, tell everyone to lock themselves inside their chamber, right away, this is something more serious than I initially thought. "

[Dane] - "Right, put yourself away from danger too. "

[Mike, to the micro] - "Mike, out. "

Mike rapidly entered his chamber and locked the door behind before putting Kadyn on the bed.

[Kadyn] - "What's going on? "

Mike (in a state of panic) - "Listen, something bad is happening right now and we don't know the cause of it, so stay beside me and don't leave my sight. "

[Kadyn] (in confusion) - "Something bad? "

[Mike] - "Yes! "

Kadyn raised from the bed and put her hands on Mike's shoulder with a tender smile.

[Kadyn] - "Calm down, Mike, whatever happened, we will find a way to solve it. "

Mike (after sitting on the bed and taking a deep breath) - "You're right, I need to think and not panic. "

[Kadyn] - "Besides, I will be there when you need me,... "

In a sudden realization, Mike jumped to the side covering a wound on his neck. Kadyn suddenly realized in shock that she just stabbed Mike in the neck with her wrist knife.

[Mike] (in confusion and surprise) - "Wha... what the hell? Why did you do that?! "

[Kadyn] (in shock and confusion) - "Ho... how? I didn't mean to stab you, Gio, I don't know what happened! "

[Mike, pointing his crystal toward Kadyn] - "Answer these questions: what's my favourite drink, what's the thing that I do to tease you in bed and what's the name of the crystal on your neck! "

[Kadyn] - "Your favourite drink is Cappuccino, you teased me by bitting my fox ear and my crystal never had a name. "

[Mike] - "You had it all wrong! "

[Kadyn] - "Then you are not the real Mike!"

[Mike, while lowering his arm] - "You are the real Kadyn. "

Kadyn promptly ran toward Mike and took him inside her embrace.

[Mike] - "Why did you do that? "

[Kadyn] (with a light voice) - "I don't know, I didn't even realize that I stabbed you, forgive me, Gio. "

[Mike] (in a forgiving tone) - "It's fine, Kadyn, it's fine, sit down. "

Kadyn kneeled to the ground, quickly ripped a piece of her clothes and wrapped it around Mike's neck wound.

[Mike] - "I must find out the wanker behind all of this, I will force him to eat shit! "

[Kadyn] (giving a kiss on Mike's face) (in a soft tone) - "Hey, you know I would never stab you, stabbing you would mean to stab myself. "

[Mike] - "It's fine, I know it's not you who did this. "

[Kadyn] (in a sudden realization) - "This accident... this one resembles that accident where McArthur destroyed an allied ship instead of hitting a big robot. " (chapter: Ace, the crusader of flame)

[Mike] - "Yeah, I remember that... it was in a flash too! No one saw or realized what happened before things went South. "

Suddenly, all of the cruiser's microphones started to make a weird twisted sound in which words can be barely hear. Soon, the voice spoke clearly inside the micros.

[CR-455] (in a greeting tone)- "Ah, greeting Overwatch and its men, what an interesting day we had. "

[CR-455] (In an obscure tone) - "You may be wondering: who I'm I, how did all the unusual things happened to you or... why did you murder your friend. "

[CR-455] (In an evil voice) - "Let me give you all the answer you need, I'm CR-455, your soon will be emperor and I'm here today for a young man amongst you called Mike Gioacchino Mundy. To put it simply, the secret weapon that you used to kill my poor friend, Ferdinand.

Dane looked in shock at the microphone as he hears Mike's name being called by CR-455.

[CR-455] (In a soft and tolerant tone) - "All you lived through today was only a partial display of my power. Thus, the disorder inside the ship, the duplicate of your face or someone else's face on yours or his and just now, some of you murdering your friend was all my doing. To put everything simply, I want the full surrender of Overwatch, you are surrounded and my fleet has you trapped. "

[CR-455] - "However, there is a way how things can be settled and that's if Mike decided to come out and fight me tomorrow at noon. Currently, we are at 7 pm, so you have 17 hours to decide and if he loses, I will kill all of you. "

[CR-455] (in a cold voice) - "This is final, bow to your emperor or be killed as a traitor. I'm afraid the time is ticking, DECIDE! "

The message ended with everyone's silence as people looked at each other, unable to speak or expresse their feeling. CR-455's words were like the damnation of Death himself, cold and unforgiven while everything remained true and not a dream.

Kadyn looked back at Mike with fear on her face. She rapidly held Mike's hand tight as she tried to hide her fear. Her heart was smashed inside her c.h.e.s.t, it felt like living every horror she lived in her past again at this very moment.

[Mike] (in a comforting tone) - "Hey, it's gonna be alright, don't worry. "

[Kadyn] (trying to hold back her tear) - "No... I'm not... I'm not worried... "

[Mike] - "Be courageous like you've always been, you are now a Mundy, you must stay strong even when the waves of the raging sea are tearing everything apart, be a professional! "

[Kadyn] (with drops of tear) - "Mike, I... I don't want to lose you again! "

The couple held each other in the arms on the ground for several minutes before Mike's chamber door suddenly opened with the captain and all his friends in front. They looked right at Mike with a sorry look in their eyes as Mike quickly stood up and walked toward the men. Kadyn rushed to grab Mike by the arm as she sobbed in tears, holding him in place.

[Mike, while taking Kadyn by the shoulders] - "Don't cry, I won't be going anywhere, I will be there for you no matter what. "

[Kadyn, while looking down] - "Don't go... I beg you! "

[Mike, while kissing Kadyn on the lips] - "Shhuuu, sleep. When you wake up, everything will be over. "

Mike left Kadyn on her own and exited his chamber with the company of the men. The girl sat on the floor in a collapse, emptied of all emotion.

[Kadyn] (in a whisper) - "Come back, promise me. "

To be continued...