AUTHOR NOTE: Hi guys! Wynter here! I just wanted to say that this is the very first story I've written and published for fun, so try to take it easy on me. This is the "hook" chapter, meaning we'll get here sooner or later in my story. I'll try my best to post every week! You just reading this makes me SUPER happy! Please leave a review, and enjoy!
Thunder cracked in the sky as rain poured down in droves. It was a quiet night in the city of Kings Row, with most people off the streets and indoors. However, nobody suspected the lone hacker fleeing down the alleyways as fast as her bloodied legs could carry her.
She turned a corner, bending over as she panted heavily. Her torn magenta clothing revealed scraped and bruised appendages which oozed with blood. Attempting to bring up her implanted computer system yielded nothing but a handful of purple sparks. Thudding footsteps echoed down the street, followed by a gruff "Sombra's over here! Let's go!"
Sombra cried out as she stumbled, continuing her flight. She vaguely recalled working with Talon a few weeks back. It was the good life, sitting in her chair, drawing funds from bank accounts and chatting with friends. Genuine friends, nothing like the puppets she had given the same title. The dream disappeared from her mind as the terrified thudthudthud of her heart mingled with the splashing of her boots in the muddy puddles.
A projectile of some sort whizzed by her matted, soggy hair, quickly followed by the sound of a gunshot.
"Sombra! We can make amends, but only if you come with us willingly! Just stop."
She dove into another alley, not caring where she would go, as long as she could escape unharmed to one of her safehouses scattered across the continent. However, her carelessness caught up with her as she approached a dead end with the top of the wall about fifteen up in the air. The hacker checked her belt, most of her translocators refusing to respond to her touch. Despite this, one of the devices glowed faintly as she waved her clawed hand in front of it. She gripped the illuminated translocator, programmed it for a five second countdown, and chucked it over the wall. As the world faded into pixelated magenta, she watched Soldier:76 and Ana halt in front of her, turning around with a glare and a hiss.
As a dark avenue appeared from the suffocating violet, so did two very familiar figures. Sombra could only let out a choked whimper as she stared at Talon's best trained assassins: Reaper and Widowmaker.
"Hello, Sombra." The living ghost spat the word as though it had been poisoned.
"Reaper. Por favor, let me go," the hacker begged, her sarcastic, playful personality long since shattered. "I haven't hurt you. Nor have I sabotaged la araña. Por favor Gabriel, por favor…" Sombra couldn't hold it back; her fatigue got the best of her as she knelt down and wept silently. Her bloodied, chipped machine pistol joined her on the rough concrete, which did nothing to ease the burning wounds and exhaustion ingrained throughout her body.
The black smoke approached her as she crouched in her weak moment. "You may have not hurt me, but you nearly brought Talon to the ground. And you will pay for that, whether it's from me or the director." He raised his shotgun to her barely functional legs. "First, we need to make sure you don't try anything funny and attempt escape. Adios, Som—" Any other words he would've said were interrupted by a ferocious growl. A deep purple dart stuck out of his arm, which fell harmlessly to the ground as Reaper disappeared in black mist.
Ana stood in the end of the alleyway, biotic rifle still smoking. Soldier:76 accompanied her, deep furrows nestled in his brow. Widowmaker grinned.
"You were once a legend, but what are you now? Just a shell of a woman…" Widowmaker sneered. She cocked her rifle into sniper position, and raised the scope to her face. "Let me finish what I started, and I'll take that other eye of yours. I doubt you'll need it, since you can barely see anything nowadays."
"I take it you don't want my autograph then. A real pity. And this time, I'm not hesitating." The senior sniper loaded a fresh dart into her gun. Soldier:76 powered on his visor, hoisting his pulse rifle off his back.
"Gabriel. Let us take the girl. We'll deliver proper justice, not mindless murder. We take her, and both of you remain unscathed. Shall we leave it at that?" The rough, muffled voice echoed powerfully through the tight passageway.
"Nice try, Jack. Ever the Boy Scout, trying to do justice," Reaper spat, grabbing an extra shotgun from his coat. "Sombra nearly brought us to the ground. She needs to pay for that, not at my hands, but the director's. He will decide whether she lives in pain or dies in pain."
Soldier:76 sighed, shaking his head. Reaper could never fall on peace. "She hurt us too, Gabriel. Maybe for the first time Talon and Overwatch can agree on something. We could decide on her punishment together, and find something that suits both of us that's within the law. However, if we need to implement force to obtain our prisoner, then Ana and I will not hesitate to do so. You have been warned." He fired a shot into the air to prove his point.
A hiss of discontent emanated from the living ghost and the spider.
"Apparently we can agree on something, Jack. Winner gets the prisoner." He raised his shotgun towards Soldier:76 and fired, the old soldier quickly dodging the flurry of shrapnel.
"I guess that's what I get for trying to negotiate with a terrorist," Jack muttered. Using his Tactical Visor, he was able to fire shots while avoiding Reaper's. Ana, on the other hand, was caught in a sniping duel with Widowmaker. While her darts may not be lethal by themselves, they would cause pain and violent nausea to those who were unfortunate enough to be stung by one. A bullet nicked Ana's shoulder, who responded by diving underneath a cargo box with a growl and administering one of her own healing darts. She cocked and threw a Biotic grenade towards where Widowmaker was stationed, who quickly responded with a pained roar.
By now, both men had bullets sticking out of various spots in their armor, with Reaper having more than Soldier:76. Since Jack was able to keep a distance from Reaper's shotguns, he had the range advantage. Reaper howled as a bullet penetrated his bulletproof vest, and turned towards Widowmaker. "Widow, we've lost this one. Let's get out of this dump before we become Swiss cheese."
Widowmaker responded with a groan and grappled her way over the wall, while Gabriel opted to Shadow-Step, roaring a final warning. "This isn't over yet, Morrison! We'll get her back and punish her for what she's done to us!" And as the final wisp of smoke disappeared over the wall, they were gone. Thunder cracked ominously overhead.
As Ana and Soldier:76 reunited, they quickly scanned over the premises. Sombra wasn't hard to find, considering her magenta tech flickered faintly from the cargo box she had been hiding under during the battle. The hacker shook, blood and tears smeared over what had once been perfect makeup.
"H-hola, guys. What can I-I help you with?" Sombra trembled, afraid of what her future would hold. She remembered this feeling from when she had bent over her parents' lifeless bodies long ago in Dorado. The feeling was nothing short of sheer terror and regret.
Ana's tough façade faltered for a moment, showing what appeared to be sympathy or pity. However, the break didn't last long, matching the stern glare the hacker was receiving from Morrison as well. "Now, are you going to be nice and come with us, or are you going to try and run again?" The sniper pulled a small pistol from the inside of her coat. She exchanged a glance with Soldier:76, the soldier nodding in response. Ana raised the sidearm towards the hacker, who quickly turned pale.
As the sniper's finger tightened around the trigger, Sombra's thoughts began to whirl wildly inside of her head. One thought seemed to overpower her mind's desperate plotting of escape: Mierda, is she going to kill me right now?
The gun fired with a loud pthchk, unlike the bang of most pistols. Immediately, Sombra felt a sharp sting on the side of her neck, and instinctively raised her hand. She wrapped her fingers around a dart, and ripped it out of her numbing flesh. The hacker blanched as she saw her vision begin to blur. She tried standing up, only to find she had no energy to do so. Her legs failed her halfway up, and she collapsed against the concrete. All sounds around her echoed, and she could feel her body beginning to shut down. Again and again, she willed her muscles to move, to do something, only to find a gloved hand pressing her gently against the floor.
"Don't fight the sedative. You'll get a fair trial, there's no need to worry about your well-being while you're out." Sombra swore she could hear nearly motherly concern in Ana's voice as she shushed her.
As the world faded into nothing, the hacker felt a strong pair of arms hoist her off the cold, hard ground. She could only hope her future wouldn't hold too much pain in the cold cell awaiting her as Sombra passed into sweet unconsciousness.
And that's a wrap for Chapter 1! Sorry, I know it's not very long, I'll try to make the next chapters twice as big if I can. If you have the time, I would greatly appreciate if you would leave your suggestions, questions, or ideas for the next chapter as a review, and I'll try to get back with you as soon as possible! Thanks for reading this! Wynter out!