"Well this is just fan-fucking-tastic."
Now for anyone who assumes that they know the Angel of Death would adopt the perception that Reyes would kill anyone who would see his face. However Gabriel saw no need, as the woman doesn't even know who he is.
"You're…Gabriel Reyes...?"
…Or not.
Reyes sighed as he slowly retracted back into his seat, pouring himself another glass of scotch, "Congratulations Widow, you found out who I am…" the man sighed sarcastically as he downed the yellow liquid with a hard gulp. His eyes quickly shot towards the woman who was taking a seat in front of him.
"How…do you know who I am anyway?" Reyes questioned with a stern expression. Amèlie leaned forward as her lips began parting.
"Someone who was very dear to me was associated with you in a way…"
Gabriel arched his eyebrow, clearly interested in this assumption. Associated with him? He doesn't get many associates these days, worse yet back in Overwatch.
"And who was this guy?" Reyes asked as he poured himself another glass.
Amèlie perched her lips as her eyes stared into the oak table below her, "It's…sensitive." She replied in a depressed manner, her hands soon clenching into fists – clearly her mental state was going through trauma.
Reyes tilted his head and slid his glass towards the woman. She looked up and saw the man smiling in a charming outfit.
"Helps me relax, good year this one." Gabriel insisted as he took another glass cup from the cabinet and placed it in front of him – pouring the glass afterwards. Amèlie held the cup with both hands, in fact she wasn't even sure alcohol would have an effect towards her genetically engineered body, hell she couldn't even feel the air conditioning in the apartment elevator.
Amèlie nonetheless gulped the yellow tonic and instantly slammed the glass cup onto the table, her face turning bitter and harsh. She shook her head and tapped two fingers on the table repeatedly – signaling another round. Reyes took the yellow bottle and hovered it over her glass bottle, dispensing a mesmerizing flow of a golden stream into the woman's cup.
"I'm…not sure who he is…" Amèlie opened up after Gabriel settled the bottle down, "All I know was that…his name was Gèrard…" A long silence followed, as Reyes' eyes began to widen – a sudden realisation hit his conscience.
"And…I loved him…" Widowmaker cried, desolate tears ran down her emotionless face, as if a rogue Omnic managed to grasp onto the last remnants of its soul, conscience…and emotion.
"Amèlie…?" Reyes leaned forward – eager to set his eyes over the familiar appearance.
Amèlie shot her eyes towards the wraith, her hands wiping the empty tears off her face.
"What did they…do to you?" Gabriel questioned as Amèlie continued her explanation.
"Gèrard always looked up to the founding members of Overwatch, including you Gabriel. Sometimes he would praise you all…more than he would praise me." Amèlie stared into the oak table before guzzling down the liquor in front of her.
Well this was a massive turn for the pair; Gabriel doesn't know what to do anymore. He discovers that one of the most infamous killers in Talon's organization was Amèlie Lacroix – Gabriel's acquaintance through Gèrard, whilst Talon has him reeled to a leash with information regarding to Dr. Ziegler, the only person who possibly knows what actually happened to him.
Reyes turned around and took another bottle of scotch, placing alongside the previous one.
"Looks like this conversation's gonna need a lot more than just cups…" Gabriel implied as he slid the glass cups to the side and capped the second bottle open.
Amèlie took the bottle closest to her and capped the lid open. She slid the top into her mouth and began tugging the bottle downwards, the liquor slowly draining into the woman's system. Gabriel sat there appalled by the sight; he never thought she had a sense of humor…or an iron liver.
Reyes clutched the second bottle and in turn, took a swig from the bottle. Briefly the room was only a continuous relay of drinks and tugs.
Reyes broke the silence with a short chuckle, "So…this is what they want."
Amèlie looked up from the bottle and looked into the dusty eyes of the phantom across her.
"Talon did something to you, didn't they Amèlie?" Gabriel asked with a stern tone.
Amèlie gave no response – her eyes drifting from his face to turn towards the living room. It seemed evident that she had no interest to further the conversation and itched herself off her seat and edged towards the living room.
A hand shot out from nowhere - grasping her wrist, causing the woman to stop and turn. Her eyes were set into the fervent observes of the specter, his grip tightening.
"Amèlie…what did they do to you?" Reyes asked in a guilty attitude. Gabriel never thought that Amèlie would be the significant killer who stood in front of him, from the beginning her face always seemed familiar however it never occurred to him that it would be the sweet, caring and beautiful woman he once knew. Yes, she was beautiful. Reyes always had an eye towards the petite woman – however knowing she was married towards an old friend; he respected the relationship and kept his distance. Now the only thing that was racing towards his head was…did she really commit?
The woman parted her lips yet no words escaped from her mouth, as if a potential gun was pointed towards her head and the trigger would be pulled if she dared to share anything. This was not the case, Amèlie simply didn't want to say thing.
"Gabriel…" The woman managed to part, "Please…help me."
Reyes loosened his grip as he was taken back from those words.
"Help you?" Reyes questioned.
Amèlie nodded, her eyes slowly beginning to tear. Only this time the tears were real. Her finger ran across her face and tapped on her temple – signaling a cause of pain and distraught.
Gabriel observed the woman's actions and expressions, suddenly jumping to a conclusion.
"Headaches, inconsistent sleep, staring off into space, anything like that…"
"The mental stability of our operatives are essential to the organisation…"
"Damned bastards…" Reyes thought to himself as he returned into reality, Amèlie's face becoming more and more distressed.
"Those bastards altered you…rearranged your system…" Reyes began to flutter in rage before turning to the woman.
"…They probably made you commit over Gèrard, didn't they?"
Amèlie unknowingly nodded as she wiped the tears away from her eyes.
"Only now I remember…" Amèlie began, "When Talon took me into those chambers…and operated on me."
"That's enough…" Reyes growled as he dawned his skull mask back over his face and tugged his gauntlets over his hands.
"I'm getting you fixed…I've had enough of Talon's charades – always gave me a heart ache anyway." Reaper tugged his Hellfires into his trench coat and wandered into the living room.
Amèlie seemed to recover most of her emotions and memories, however Talon's control was seemingly adequate as she began to flutter in eccentric orders.
"I'm staying here until I complete my mission…" Amèlie barked towards the wraith.
"Fucking crazy? Forget Talon and forget about this endeavour, I'm getting you fixed…for your sake…" Just then, a bullet flew into the room, shattering the glass window. It came from the Secretary's room, a silenced sniper rifle barrel can be seen poking out from the window – armed by a bodyguard with Belgian authorities accompanying the room.
"Get down!" Reaper roared as he leapt directly into Amèlie, forcing her body to tumble with him.
"How did they find us?" Widowmaker exclaimed, Reaper took a thought before hitting himself with a sudden realisation.
"I hope you won't deceive us in anyway, Talon has eyes across the world…"
Reaper shot his head around the room, only to notice a small circular mechanism placed in the corner of the living room.
"Camera…? No, microphone." Reaper thought to himself.
"Looks like Talon's heard our little chat." Reaper growled as he edged towards Amèlie, crouching out of sight from the window.
The pair planted their backs against the wall as their eyes locked onto the exit door across them. "Merde, how are we going to get across?" Widowmaker questioned.
"I've got an idea…" Reaper implied as he clenched his taloned hand into a ball.
"As soon as it happens…run."
"Wait…what?" And without warning Reaper stood up and rolled his shoulders back, orange flames bursted through the hollow eyes of his mask, a dark aura of mist and fog began encircling the Angel of Death.
A cackle can be heard beneath his helm,
"Herherhahahaha!"
It became evident that Reyes, no…Reaper had gone under an ecstasy of blood lust. His hands slowly reached into his trench coat, pulling out engraved Hellfires.
Amèlie, soon catching the drift, dashed towards the door and looked over her shoulder. Reaper was continuously firing the inaccurate weapons directly towards the emplacement across the apartment. Though the pellets never actually hit their targets, surrounding windows were shattered and bullet holes pierced themselves into the metal reinforcing of the hotel. The belligerents around the window scattered across the room, attempting to avoid the flurry of rounds propelling towards them.
The fires around Reaper's eyes burned with rage – his fingers tugging the triggers continuously. "Yes…." Reaper muttered in a mellow tone as the shadows began to swirl around his figure. This is what he is…a monster. He should've died back there in Switzerland, Angela should've left him there beneath the rubble – Everything he's done, and everything Blackwatch has done should've died along with him. Damn Overwatch, damn Blackwatch, and fuck the whole world! Why did it have to be him? Why? Why was he brought back into this corrupt world? It was never his fault. It NEVER was.
A hand clutched over Reaper's arm. The wraith turned his head, the fires burning through the hollow eyes. A bright woman looked up to the dark figure, her yellow eyes sparking for the first time with life. The shadows dampened and the flames receded.
The 'monster' dulled his fangs; the Hellfires plummeted beside the wraith. His eyes returned the gaze towards the woman. The woman's grip tightened, edging for the pair to leave. Reaper sighed, "…Lets go Amèlie." The woman nodded in response, grabbing her rifle in the process. The pair ran through the door and paced towards the elevator. While they walked down the corridor the elevator doors swung open, Belgian authorities hovering towards the couple. "Merde…" Widowmaker exclaimed as they stopped in front of the formation, their weapons armed towards them.
"Get back!" Reaper roared, shoving the woman back into the room, knocking her fragile form onto the floor. The firearms discharged, sending rounds propelling towards the Angel of Death. A bullet caught him in the abdomen before he could wraith the rounds through him. The firearms were discharged and the spectre hovered towards the formation.
"I'll see all in Hell…" Reaper ushered before dispersing out of his wraith form and retracted his Hellfires from his trench coat.
"DIE DIE DIE!"
Blood was spilt across the corridor, bodies flew in separate directions and bystanders residing in the dispersed rooms dared not peek out.
Reaper stood over the mound of corpses before plummeting himself against the wall, his hand clenching the wound beside his lower hip. Amèlie regained her stance and rushed towards the injured wraith.
"Mon Dieu…" She muttered beneath her breath as blackened blood oozed from Reaper's wound.
"Gabriel…let me hel-" She was stopped by Reaper's taloned hand shooting out in front of her, halting the woman in her tracks.
"Urrgh…" He slowly stood up and walked over to one of the deformed corpses lying in a disfigured position. The wraith shot his hand over the man's face, a mixture of purple, black and orange force swirled around Reaper's arm and travelled across his body. The corpse slowly drained from its colour, an empty pale shell was all that remained.
"Mmmph…" Reaper cried in ecstasy, the wound seemingly healed beneath the heavy armor. Reaper turned his head towards the woman, her expression seemingly shocked and awed.
"What…the…hell?" Amèlie broke out, the wraith merely scoffed.
"This is who- what I am now. A creature…" He hung his head down in shame, his hands clenching into fists.
"No…" Amèlie responded, a smile breaking into view.
"You are a man with a heart, you always were Gabriel…"
Reaper shook his head, "No…I'm not." He looked towards the woman with solemn eyes. The woman reached her hand towards the wraith but he turned before it could connect.
"The ground floor's probably crowded with the police…" Reaper insisted as he turned back towards the woman.
"Then what are we supposed to do?" Widowmaker asked. Reaper rubbed his chin, "Come here…" Amèlie taken back by the request, complied.
As she walked over towards the dark figure the wraith manifested purple-black aura around him. A circle developing beneath them. "Hold on tight…and close your eyes." Reaper whispered.
Amèlie clenched her hands over the man's trench coat and closed her eyes. A feeling of cold gales brushed across the woman's face, eerie echoes could be heard traveling through the abyss in which the pair were traveling through. "You can open them now…" Reaper insisted. The woman's eyes swung open. Their surroundings appearing as a suburban house run down through its age yet surprisingly sturdy and had a neat interior.
"Fuck…" Reaper grunted as he collapsed on one knee. Amèlie knelt beside him, unsure of what caused Reaper's pain.
"What is it?" Widowmaker questioned.
"Egh, don't worry…it's just that I've never shadow stepped anyone other than myself, additionally stepping such a distance."
Reaper grunted as his hand latched over his heart.
"You need rest Gabriel." Amèlie retorted as she accompanied the wraith over to a nearby couch, placing him ever so gently over it. Sounds of cars can be heard down to Earth. Sirens racing across the window and the bustling of pedestrian activity was vibrant.
"Sirens…? The police found us?" Widowmaker exclaimed.
"No…welcome to Las Angeles." Reaper mellowed.
"What?"
"Yeah, I wasn't kidding when I said distance…"
"How did you get us across the ocean?" Widowmaker questioned.
Reaper merely shook his head. "Huh…guess you could say it's my power. Nearly killed me though. Can't do that ever again."
"Then what triggered you to accomplish this impossible feat?"
"I don't know…" Reaper responded. "Guess…I had someone to protect." Reaper responded as he slowly turned his head towards the woman.
Amèlie was stunned at the virtue of the man in front of her. Needless to say even Gèrard might not have provided her the attention she craved as much as Reyes did. Amèlie smiled towards the wraith yet questioned. "What do we do now?"
"First of all…" Reaper grunted. "I'm gonna find a way to get you fixed, you might've regained your state for the moment. But Talon are unpredictable bastards…" The woman sighed in a unmoral tone.
"Get to the cabinet in the kitchen…there should be Imipramine tablets that should help you keep your mind."
Amèlie did as she was told, and evidently there were Imipramine tablets inside the cabinet. She looked at the back of the package whilst walking back into the living room.
"Is this…your home?" Amèlie asked the wraith. Reaper grunted as he arched his back slightly upwards, leaning his head on the soft armrest.
"Yeah…might be the only place I could call home."
"Very cozy…" Amèlie jested.
"Mhm…"
"And what about the Imipramine's? How do you know these would help me?"
"Well, I took a few lessons in mental stability when Blackwatch was still around. Came in handy during a couple covert ops. I guess…Angela…was helpful."
"Angela…that's it. She could help Amèlie break free from this trance. While she's at it she can also look at what's happening to me for crying out loud."
"Do you need anything?" Amèlie questioned. Reaper shook his head, "I'll be fine, just a little bit light headed. Make yourself at home…bathroom's to the left; you've already been to the kitchen and my bedroom's upstairs."
Amèlie nodded after clarifying the whereabouts of the rooms. "I'll go for a shower, I'll be out as soon as possible Gabriel."
"Yeah…the towels are clean don't worry about them, they're in the cabinet inside the bathroom." Amèlie walked inside the tiled room, she stationed herself in front of the sink and turned the valves – releasing warm water into her cupped hands. She splashed the water across her face, giving off a refreshed sensation and a cleared mind. Once complete the valves were shut off.
"Gabriel, I'm sorry I dragged you into this. Talon will be hunting the both of us now, and the responsibility is all on me…"
Amèlie lifted her head to face the vibrant mirror, her yellow eyes staring towards a conflicting Reflection.
Talon's Central Committee
"Report…" an executive officer ordered with little patience.
"W-we regret to inform sir…b-but the operatives classified as Widowmaker and Reaper have disappeared from the operation site." Another suited individual replied.
"What…? How!? Check the entire city if you have to!"
"This is chaotic, we've lost a prioritised agent and managed to turn a useful mercenary rogue."
"Well judging from the recordings, we can safely assume that the pair have identified each other-"
"Where are the other current operatives?"
"How did Larcroix break free from the proce-"
The entire room erupted with arguments, each side of the long table spouting requests, orders and instructions. This soon ended when the doors to the conference swung open, a vain man entering strutting through the entrance – resulting in the complete and total silence of the room. All the men stood up at attention, lifting their heads up high in a military fashion.
"Please, be seated." The man ordered as he took his seat in front of the room.
"Vice-Chairman, the situation is dire – 2 operatives have turned rogue and the one known as Reaper is attempting to release Larcroix from the GA process."
"From Region B-7?" The VC questioned. "Interesting…"
"Gentlemen of the committee do not fret over such a minor set back." The VC leaned forward towards the desk, clasping his hands together.
"The plan must continue if Overwatch is to be completely eradicated. Clearly mercenaries and defect operatives will not complete this task. Therefore I propose the immediate mobilization of our forces, that is if the Chairman allows it…any opposers?"
The room was silent.
"Good…" The VC smiled with a sly more. "Leave Reyes and Larcroix to me."
