Rift Rivals

One Shot

The Rift Wars finals were buzzing with the usual electric tension, but tonight, something was off. BayaniBoy scowled at the game screen, his fingers hovering over the controls. He could see his opponent—AikaKirara, the infamous ice queen—seated across the stage, her face impassive.

They were rivals, always had been, and the idea of her beating him again twisted his gut. Still, he is positive that he'll win tonight's game.

"You ready to lose, Aika?" Boy muttered under his breath.

The stoic tactician, as usual, didn't respond. Her shadow wolf, Lambong, prowled in the fog of war, invisible but ever-present, just like her tactics—quiet, cold, deadly. Meanwhile, the aggressive warrior's fiery drake Alab was ready to blaze through the top lane with his aggressive play style.

The countdown hit zero.

Game on.

---

BayaniBoy charged down his lane, Alab's flames ripping through the enemy minions. He smirked to himself—AikaKirara's team was too slow, too passive. He'd crush her defenses before she even reached his side of the map.

But just as he was about to push for her Rune Tower, the screen glitched. Alab flickered, and then, to Boy's shock, the drake vanished. Replaced by a glowing phoenix.

"What the hell?" he cursed.

Maharlika, the legendary phoenix. It wasn't supposed to be in play—neither of them had picked it.

His comms crackled to life. AikaKirara's voice, calm, cut through. "Do you see this?"

"Yeah, and it's not good."

He tried to control Maharlika, but the phoenix wasn't responding. It jerked between commands, flames flickering out of sync.

"Boy," Aika said again. "Maharlika is connected to both of us."

BayaniBoy blinked. "What?"

"We're sharing the Avatar. The game's glitched, and now Maharlika is responding to both our inputs."

"No way." BayaniBoy's stomach dropped as Maharlika flailed, slamming into a jungle wall with a burst of fire.

AikaKirara sighed. "We either figure this out, or we both lose."

He clenched his jaw. They were supposed to be enemies—rivals locked in a battle for the championship. But if what she said was true, they had to cooperate.

"Fine," he muttered. "What's the plan?"

---

AikaKirara's tone was measured. "Maharlika is more powerful than our usual Avatars, but it's unstable. We need to sync up our moves. Start by controlling mid-lane."

BayaniBoy hesitated. His instinct was to charge, to go full force, but he held back. "Mid-lane it is."

The phoenix rose into the air, flames trailing behind as they hovered over the battlefield. Below, the fight raged between their respective teams, but Maharlika moved in sync with neither. It felt awkward—unnatural.

"My team's jungler is out of position," she said, breaking the silence. "If we strike now, we can disrupt our push on your Rune Tower."

BayaniBoy winced. "Helping me out now? What's the catch?"

"Don't get used to it. We're not playing for ourselves anymore."

He glanced across the arena at her. AikaKirara's expression was cold as usual, but there was something different in her tone. She was serious. Whatever this glitch was, it had shifted the stakes. The goal wasn't just to beat each other anymore—it was survival.

"Let's hit him together," she said. "On my count. Three... two... one!"

Maharlika dove, its wings igniting as they combined their efforts. The attack obliterated said jungler before he could react. BayaniBoy blinked in surprise, as his heart raced.

"That... worked," he said, shocked.

"Keep your focus," she replied, her voice level but sharp. "We're just getting started."

---

As the game pressed on, BayaniBoy found himself falling into a strange rhythm with AikaKirara. They were supposed to be enemies, but with Maharlika, their synergy was undeniable.

"We need to push back," she said as the enemy team rallied at their mid-lane. "Your team is weak without you."

He bristled but couldn't argue. She was right. His team was struggling without him leading the charge.

Together, they guided Maharlika across the battlefield, balancing her careful strategy with his aggressive instinct. The phoenix moved smoothly now, responding to their combined inputs.

It wasn't just about winning anymore. It was about surviving a broken game.

---

Suddenly, alarms blared across the arena. The crowd gasped as a notification flashed on-screen.

WARNING: Enemy Nexus Compromised.

BayaniBoy's eyes widened. A suddenly sprouted third, neutral team—AI-controlled bots known as the Scourge—was making an all-out assault on both their Nexuses. This wasn't part of the regular game. The glitch had triggered something far more dangerous.

"They're going for our Nexuses," she said, her calm cracking slightly. "If the Scourge destroys them, we both lose."

For a second, BayaniBoy's mind raced. They had to defend both their bases—cooperating wasn't just an option, it was the only way to stop it.

"Then we defend both," he responded, surprising even himself. "We work together, hold off their bots, and take them out."

AikaKirara glanced across the stage at him, a flash of surprise in her icy eyes. "Agreed."

---

They fought as one, guiding Maharlika back and forth between their Nexuses, defending them with precision and speed. Every time BayaniBoy thought they were about to lose control, AikaKirara's voice was there, steadying him.

"Timing, Boy. Wait for it."

And when she hesitated, he urged them forward. "We've got this. Don't hold back."

The phoenix blazed through the Scourge's waves, pushing the bots back from their Nexuses time and again. He couldn't deny it anymore—they made a hell of a team.

Finally, as the last wave of bots fell, they unleashed Maharlika's ultimate—Phoenix's Rebirth—destroying the Scourge and stabilizing the battlefield.

---

The game ended in a draw, but neither player looked disappointed. They had fought together and survived something far more dangerous than each other.

BayaniBoy pulled off his headset, glancing across the arena at AikaKirara. She was already looking at him, and for the first time in all their years of rivalry, she smiled.

"Not bad, Boy," she said, walking over.

He grinned, shaking her hand. "Likewise, Aika. Guess we make a decent team."

Asthey walked off the stage side by side, he couldn't help but think that maybe—just maybe—this rivalry wasn't so bad after all.