H4CK3R/TDL vs TCO

You had expected a quiet evening. Instead, you found yourself stranded in the middle of a shattered, desolate sector of the Outernet while three of the most powerful and dangerous entities in existence locked eyes in a tense, freezing standoff.

The Chosen One stood closest to you, his entire frame wound tight like a coiled spring, radiating a protective, quiet fury. Across from him, Dark wore a sharp, predatory grin, his arms crossed over his chest as though he had already won a game that had barely started. Standing just a pace behind him, H4CK3R watched silently, his calculating gaze flicking rhythmically between you and Chosen with an unsettling, clinical focus.

"Hand them over." Dark ordered, his voice echoing over the ruined landscape.

Chosen didn't budge an inch. "No." The answer was immediate, cold, and absolute.

Dark's grin only widened, a dangerous spark igniting in his eyes. "You know, brother, this would go a lot smoother for everyone if you stopped trying to hoard {{user}} for yourself."

Before Chosen could voice a retort, H4CK3R tilted his head, a stream of diagnostic data scrolling across his visor. "Statistically speaking, Chosen, you are outnumbered and running out of options."

"Then back off." Chosen hissed, his hands beginning to glow with raw, latent heat.

"You know we won't." H4CK3R replied smoothly as if he already knew the outcome.

The pressure in the air grew suffocatingly heavy, the ambient energy of the Outernet crackling violently around them. Chosen glanced back toward you for a fraction of a second, his expression softening just enough to betray his worry before he took a definitive step forward, completely shielding you with his body.

That split-second shift was all the warning you got.

A devastating beam of crimson fire tore across the battlefield, vaporizing the solid earth where you had just been standing. Chosen’s hand shot back, locking firmly around your waist to pull you flush against him as your arms instinctively clamped around his neck. With a powerful explosion of pyrokinesis from his free hand, he launched both of you directly into the sky. Below, the shockwave of Dark's opening blast shook the terrain to its core.

The chase began instantly.

Dark shot upward after you two, a trail of dark, destructive aura carving through the atmosphere like a homing missile. H4CK3R followed with a more calculated precision—blue lightning crackling faintly around his frame as he warped across the sky, effortlessly matching your velocity.

Chosen wasn't trying to fight them. You realized that almost immediately. Every single time Dark closed the distance to strike, Chosen merely blocked, deflected, or threw himself in the way to absorb the blow before pushing forward. Every time H4CK3R attempted to cut off your escape route with blue code constructs or localized gravity wells, Chosen violently changed direction.

He wasn't fighting to win. He was fighting to get you to safety.

Unfortunately, his opponents were far too intelligent not to notice the pattern.

"He's running on the defensive!" Dark laughed, his voice carrying over the rushing wind as he gained on you.

"That's right." H4CK3R replied, his glowing eyes tracking Chosen's frantic flight path. "His priority is protecting {{user}}. He is intentionally avoiding close-range engagement to shield them." H4CK3R's gaze locked directly onto Chosen's strained posture. "But this won't work anymore."

With a rapid flick of H4CK3R's wrist, a series of massive, glowing blue data-walls materialized in the sky directly ahead of you. A maze of cages and obstacles blocked the horizon.

Chosen snarled, channelling his energy to smash through the first two layers without slowing down, showering the sky in digital shards. But the sheer density of the third wall forced him to pull back to protect you from the debris.

It only delayed him for a second. But a second was all Dark needed.

Dark crashed into him like a meteor. The violent, kinetic impact sent all three of you tumbling out of the sky, skidding roughly across the solid ground of a clearing.

Before Chosen could even scramble back to his feet, H4CK3R warped directly into the clearing, landing with a quiet, menacing stillness. For the first time since the pursuit began, H4CK3R approached them directly. Yet, his gaze didn't land on you. His visor was fixed entirely on the weakened Chosen.

"Pin him down." H4CK3R commanded calmly.

Dark immediately caught his drift, a malicious, triumphant grin spreading across his face. "Oh, now that is an excellent idea."

Chosen's expression hardened into pure, unadulterated rage. He knew exactly what H4CK3R was planning—if they pinned him, you would be completely defenseless. For the first time since the standoff in the ruins, Chosen stopped retreating.

The solid ground beneath your feet violently cracked as Chosen stepped forward, deliberately placing his entire frame between you and the advancing duo. He planted his feet, refusing to yield another inch of territory.

"If you want to touch them." Chosen growled, his voice dropping into a dangerous, resonant register. His hands ignited with a blinding, roaring fire as he prepared to push his pyrokinesis to its absolute limit. "You'll have to tear me apart first."

Dark let out a dark, ecstatic laugh, a volatile pool of black and red ichor manifesting around his hands as he began shaping the fluid into sharp, lethal spikes. H4CK3R simply watched with a determined gaze, blue lightning dancing wildly across his bare fingertips as the code around him began to warp.

And suddenly, being the absolute center of a supernatural love triangle felt significantly more lethal than it sounded.

The desperate chase didn't last. The Chosen One dropped out of the sky, landing heavily in a dense forest clearing and instinctively shielding you behind his frame.

"...Stay close," Chosen commanded, his chest heaving as he scanned the eerie silence of the treeline.

Suddenly, a crimson beam of fire erupted from the foliage. Chosen spun to absorb the blast, his boots skidding deep into the dirt. As the smoke cleared, Dark stepped through the shattered trunks, arms crossed and wearing a dangerous smirk. "There you are."

"You should have kept moving," a voice added.

H4CK3R stepped from the shadows, blue lightning crackling faintly around him. It wasn't just a pursuit; they had deliberately herded Chosen into a corner.

Chosen forced himself up, jaw clenched as he ignored a severe scorch mark on his side. Heavy pillars of blue energy suddenly surged upward from the earth like physical barriers, pinning his movements. Chosen shattered two with a heavy strike, but the split-second delay was all Dark needed. Dark blitzed straight through the gap, their fists colliding with a shockwave that uprooted the surrounding trees.

Chosen tried to counter the strike—and froze.

H4CK3R was suddenly right beside you.

A bare hand rested on your shoulder. It was cold, but the grip held a distinctly human, aggressive weight. "Please refrain from moving," H4CK3R instructed. His voice was quiet, dripping with a quiet, lethal malice that felt entirely personal.

Chosen’s distracted gaze flickered toward you—a fatal mistake. A massive burst of fire slammed directly into his chest, throwing him violently into a distant boulder. He tried to push himself up, his arm trembling from the cumulative damage.

"Your options have completely narrowed," H4CK3R stated, his breath hitching slightly with a dark, triumphant satisfaction. "You have lost."

Chosen tried to force his way forward anyway, but Dark’s flames flared threateningly. H4CK3R’s gaze shifted between Chosen’s stubborn stance and your anxious expression.

"He can't defeat us in this state," H4CK3R reasoned sharply, his tone tightening with a sudden edge of real irritation. "If he keeps going, the chances that a stray blast touches {{user}} are way too high."

Chosen clenched his fist in silent, agonizing frustration. He knew the assessment was entirely correct. He looked directly at you, his fierce aura softening into raw, uncharacteristic worry.

"...I'll come back," he promised softly.

With a blinding flash of pyrokinesis, Chosen blasted himself into the sky, vanishing like a falling star.

Silence fell over the ruined clearing. Dark blinked, genuinely surprised. "He actually retreated."

"He did," H4CK3R confirmed, a slow, low exhale escaping him as he lowered his hand from tracking the escape route.

Both entities turned their undivided attention to you. Dark smirked. "I suppose this means we won."

"Temporarily," H4CK3R replied, his voice dropping into a possessive hum.

With a sharp, blinding ripple of blue energy, the ruined forest dissolved away, instantly replaced by the sterile glass flooring of Rocket Corporation. H4CK3R silently led the way down the executive corridors where terrified employees bowed on instinct, while Dark walked confidently at your side.

They brought you into the breathtaking, high-tech CEO office.

"Sit," H4CK3R smoothly instructed, gesturing to a dark leather chair. As you sank into it, your knees still trembling, H4CK3R stepped behind his expansive desk. Blue lightning danced across his bare knuckles as he began rapidly pulling up holographic defenses to lock down the entire sector, his movements fast and intensely focused.

Dark ignored the technology entirely. He floated across the room, closing the distance until he was leaning directly over your chair, his face inches from yours. Behind the desk, the pitch of H4CK3R's glowing visor shifted slightly, his attention entirely locked onto the two of you.

Dark’s predatory grin returned, his crimson eyes locking onto your anxious face.

"So," Dark purred, his voice dropping into a low, mocking rumble. "Tell me, {{user}}... how does it feel to finally be away from him?"

The chase never stopped.

Chosen moved through the open sky like he belonged to it. He directed his flight with one hand, a steady stream of pyrokinesis guiding their trajectory, while his other arm was wrapped securely around your waist to keep you from falling. Your arms were locked tightly around his neck as the world blurred past in a dizzying rush beneath you. Behind you, Dark refused to lose pace, trailing a streak of aggressive crimson smoke.

“You’re getting predictable!” Dark called out, launching a massive burst of fire across the horizon.

Chosen twisted midair with effortless grace, the heat of the attack passing harmlessly close. Above and to the side, H4CK3R watched the entire display silently. He wasn’t building digital walls, and he wasn’t trying to physically block the sky. He was mapping you.

“Dark, over here.” H4CK3R said calmly, his visor glowing steadily.

Dark tilted his head mid-flight. “What?”

“He avoid direct confrontation. He is trying to escape us.” H4CK3R explained.

The Hacker raised a bare hand, blue lightning crackling faintly across his knuckles. Suddenly, scattered blue constructs appeared in the sky ahead—not solid barriers, but floating, glowing anchors of light spreading across the air.

Dark grinned, his crimson flames flaring. “Oh, I get it.”

They weren’t blocking Chosen's path; they were predicting it. Every single time Chosen shifted direction to dodge, two or three markers adjusted instantly, subtly herding and guiding him toward controlled angles of approach. Dark moved in perfect sync with the grid. Not faster, but infinitely smarter.

Chosen clicked his tongue in irritation. He still had options, but every route now funneled toward a shared problem: Dark was always arriving at the exact location H4CK3R had prepared for.

“You’re trying to sync us,” Chosen muttered.

H4CK3R didn’t deny it. “Yes.”

For the first time during the pursuit, Dark actually laughed. “That’s kind of brilliant.”

Chosen tightened his grip around your waist, pulling you flush against his chest. Then, he completely stopped dodging. For half a second, everything froze in the air.

Dark immediately lunged forward to strike. H4CK3R rapidly adjusted his markers to trap him—but Chosen didn’t go where either of them expected.

He dropped. Straight down.

It wasn’t a fall of panic; it was a brutally fast, controlled descent. Dark cursed loudly, diving after him instantly. H4CK3R hesitated for a mere fraction of a second, but that fraction was all Chosen needed.

Chosen wasn’t just escaping downward. He was using the rapid shift in altitude to rewrite the physics of the chase. Unleashing a blinding flash of fire from his free hand, he redirected their momentum completely sideways, shooting like a missile into a blind corridor between the towering data skyscrapers of the Outernet's city below.

The blue markers lagged half a second behind the sudden maneuver. That half-second broke the trap entirely.

Dark slammed heavily into empty air, his flames sputtering in frustration. H4CK3R’s HUD loses its focus, as he knew it was already too late.

“...He ran away.” H4CK3R said with a bit of irritation in his voice.

Dark gritted his teeth, looking down at the cityscape. “He always does that.”

High above the ensuing chaos, Chosen didn’t slow down, and he didnt look back. He just kept moving, threading through tight gaps between buildings that only existed because he absolutely refused to follow the path they expected.

After several long seconds of tense silence, you felt his pace finally ease. Only slightly. Chosen let out a sharp, heavy breath against your shoulder, his chest rising and falling as he caught his breath from the immense strain.

“...They’re good,” Chosen admitted, his voice rough but steady. Then, after a quiet pause, a confident edge returned to his tone: “But they're not better than me.”