The road between Anga and Mahismati stretched long and unforgiving.
Arya rode at the head of his column, armor dulled by dust and blood alike. The Dominion Protocol still lingered within him—quiet, heavy, suppressing something vital.
Empathy.
It did not erase it.
It buried it.
---
> [Dominion Protocol – Residual Effect]
> Emotional Dampening: Active
> Cognitive Efficiency: Elevated
Arya felt sharper.
Colder.
And that terrified him more than any enemy.
---
Behind him, Karna watched.
He had chosen to ride alongside Mahismati's escort—not as a guest, not as an ally, but as a king unwilling to hide behind walls after betrayal.
"You feel different," Karna said suddenly.
Arya did not turn.
"You feel angry," Karna continued, "but not uncontrolled."
Arya finally looked at him.
"That's what war requires."
Karna frowned.
"No," he said quietly. "That's what war consumes."
---
They rode in silence after that.
Two kings.
Two paths forged from abandonment.
One sky struggling to hold them both.
---
At dusk, the scouts returned.
"Kuru forces," one reported. "Forward detachment. They're waiting ahead."
Arya halted the column.
Numbers flashed through his mind automatically.
Too fast.
Too clean.
---
> [Strategic Assessment]
> Enemy Intent: Provocation
> Likely Objective:
> Force Karna's Hand
> Test Arya's Limits
Arya dismounted.
"Karna," he said calmly. "They're baiting you."
Karna's jaw tightened.
"I know."
"And?"
"And I'm tired of pretending restraint equals righteousness."
---
They approached the Kuru camp together.
No armor gleamed.
No horns sounded.
Just two figures walking forward under the dying sun.
---
A Kuru commander stepped out, sneering.
"King Karna," he said loudly, "by decree of Hastinapura, you stand accused of—"
He never finished.
Karna drew.
The arrow pinned the man's throat to the post behind him.
Silence crashed down.
---
> [Karna – Line Crossed]
> Public Defiance: Absolute
Arya closed his eyes briefly.
"So be it."
---
The Kuru soldiers charged.
Not disciplined.
Not coordinated.
This was punishment, not war.
---
Arya stepped forward.
Dominion Protocol surged.
---
> [Authority Aura – Manifest]
> Enemy Morale: Crumbling
> Command Structures: Failing
Arya raised his hand.
"Stop."
The word was not loud.
But it was final.
Half the soldiers froze.
The others hesitated.
Karna watched, stunned.
"This power…" he muttered. "It bends men."
Arya's voice was cold.
"It breaks them."
---
Steel clashed.
Not between Arya and Karna—
But between what they believed strength should be.
Karna fought like fire.
Arya fought like inevitability.
---
Minutes later, the camp lay silent.
Not slaughtered.
Broken.
---
Karna stood over a wounded soldier.
The man shook.
"Mercy," he whispered.
Karna hesitated.
Arya watched closely.
This was not about the soldier.
This was about the kind of king Karna would be.
---
Karna lowered his bow.
"Leave," he said.
The man fled.
---
> [Bond Update]
> Karna – Mercy Retained
> Path Divergence Confirmed
Arya exhaled slowly.
Something loosened inside him.
---
They stood alone among the remnants.
"You could've stopped me," Karna said.
"I could have," Arya replied.
"Why didn't you?"
Arya met his gaze.
"Because if I decide every outcome, then I become worse than fate."
---
The system pulsed uneasily.
---
> [Warning]
> Dominion Protocol Conflicting with Core Identity
> Recommendation:
> Limit Usage or Accept Transformation
Arya clenched his fist.
Not yet.
---
That night, they camped beneath open sky.
No guards between them.
Just truth.
---
"Do you ever wonder," Karna said quietly, "what would've happened if we were raised differently?"
Arya stared at the fire.
"Every day."
"And?"
"And it doesn't matter," Arya replied. "Because this is who the world forced us to become."
---
Karna laughed bitterly.
"Then let's make sure it regrets that."
---
In Hastinapura, Duryodhana received the final report.
Kuru detachment broken.
Commander dead.
Karna openly hostile.
Mahismati present.
---
He crushed the scroll.
"No more games," he snarled.
---
> [Kuru High Command – Directive Issued]
> War Authorization: Approved
> Target:
> Mahismati First
> Anga Second
---
The system warned Arya as dawn broke.
---
> [Global Event Triggered]
> Mahabharata – War Phase Initiated
> From this point forward:
> Major Deaths Locked
> Destiny Resistance Cost Increased
Arya looked east.
Smoke rose on the horizon.
Mahismati.
---
Karna followed his gaze.
"They're coming for you."
Arya nodded.
"And after me?"
Karna smiled grimly.
"After us."
---
They mounted simultaneously.
Two kings.
Two suns.
One sky that could no longer contain them both.
---
As they rode toward war, Arya whispered—
"Let history decide which of us was right."
Karna answered—
"History lies."
---
And somewhere beyond gods and men, destiny tightened its grip.
---
End of Chapter 17