Chapter 1:
His head turned from side to side, trying to locate where the noise was coming from. Rustling sounds surrounded him, the undergrowth alive with sound. The sun was low in the sky, blinding him in one direction, and casting eerie shadows in the other. The towering beech trees filled his vision, seemingly going on for miles in every direction. Then, suddenly, the rustling stopped, as did every other sound. A deafening silence filled the air.
*phht*
An arrow smacked the ground just to the left of the cowboy's foot. Just as he dashed for the nearest tree, another arrow catapulted towards him, causing him to turn on his heels, rolling away and pressing himself against a rough, misshapen tree, hoping he was out of sight of whoever was firing at him. His heart began to pound out of chest. He checked the barrel of his revolver, confirming that it was full. He cocked it, took a deep breath, then stepped out from behind his cover. Instantly, an arrow thudded next to his head, embedding itself into the trunk beside him. He glanced upwards, catching a glimpse of a figure, silhouetted against the sun, crouching on a tree branch. As he raised his gun to fire, it moved, faster than he could track with his eyes, dropping down from the branch and disappearing into the undergrowth once more. He fired a volley of shots, but he didn't appear to hit anything.
Feeling a moment of relative safety, Jesse turned to examine the arrow stuck in the tree next to him. He grasped it and yanked it out of the trunk, holding it closer to get a better look. It had a smooth wooden shaft, tipped with a metal head. His eyes widened as he noticed the seal printed on the fletching of the arrow, recognising the two dragons surrounding a circle as the sign of the Shimada clan.
Back in his time in Blackwatch, his friend Genji had told tales of his brother, Hanzo, and how he had tried to kill him, after he betrayed the Shimada clan by refusing to take leadership of it. Genji told of Hanzo's masterful archery and swordsmanship skills, but how he had abandoned the art of sword fighting after he used it to try and kill his brother. Genji never knew what became of his brother, but he had assumed he went on to lead the Shimada clan in his place.
The crunch of leaves underfoot caused McCree to snap back to reality and, realising the danger he was in, McCree looked around hurriedly to see what had made the noise. But, it was to no avail, as the light had all but completely disappeared over the various shrubs and bushes surrounding him. It then dawned on Jesse that he was alone in a forest at night, with a deadly and armed assassin. Jesse heard a snap of a twig behind him, causing him to break into a sprint, not knowing where he was running, and not caring, so long as it was away from whoever was following him.
Jesse heard the running of feet behind him, and instinctively grabbed a flashbang from his belt, before throwing it behind him. A piercing white light exploded behind him, followed by a deafening bang. He continued running for a few metres before looking down at his belt. He hadn't thrown a flashbang; he'd thrown a concussion grenade. He glanced back to see the figure lying on the ground, having obviously been knocked out by the blast. McCree stood there, unsure as to what he should do. His natural instincts were telling him to run, but curiosity got the better of him, and he went to see who it was.