"…Stay with you?" Gabriel questioned as he turned to face the helpless woman, staring directly into his forbidden soul. Her eyes glowed like yellow sapphires, her lips perched and the expression urging the figure of death…to stay.
"Please?" She whispered as her hands clenched tightly against his firm arm. Reyes couldn't disregard this pleading, ultimately nodding his head in a solemn understanding. He wriggled himself inside the bed, stationing next to the woman beside him and planting his head over the pillow.
"Uh…is that better Amèlie?"
She smiled and nodded.
"Better." She replied with a smile.
Reyes was anxious, nervous and ultimately awestruck. He was laying closely next to Amèlie Larcroix…why? Was she really serious about her statements towards him – as a man, as a protector? After all that he's done he really shouldn't be bumped into that obscene category. Blackwatch was the beginning of his downfall and his prominent rise to the monster he has become, every life he has taken will haunt him till the end of his days – as if that will arrive anytime soon.
Gabriel looked towards his companion – sound asleep with her arms wrapped around his. Reyes reached his hand behind his head, resting as he turned his head towards the ceiling. Yes, he will be there for her. He has lost too much over the years and he sure as hell won't lose another person he cared for.
Gabriel took one last look towards his companion, before finally the heavy urge for rest succumbed him. His eyes slowly closed – isolated dreams dashing through his cursed conscious.
He couldn't feel a thing. His arms, his legs, his torso, dear God he can't move. Gabriel could barely open his eyes, however his mind was still open towards his surroundings – his senses picking up vibrant details. There was a constant clattering of metallic equipment, muffled by the ringing in his ears. All he could remember was the explosion, and Jack propelling off into the opposite direction. What the hell happened? An innocent voice echoed through his ears – it was familiar; only one person in his entire life had an accent like that. Of course…it had to be her.
"Stay with me Gabriel!" The voice resounded with a trembling fear.
"No Angela…leave me to die." Reyes thought to himself. His body remained isolated and motionless, the slow sounds of the heart rate monitor ringing into his mind.
*Beep*
…
*Beep*
…
*Beep*
"Ver dammt!" Angela cursed in her native tongue. The clattering of machinery and metallic tools strengthened, he could hear the click-clack of Angela's heels dashing across the room, front to back – having no knowledge to what the Swiss doctor was doing, however he knew she was busy doing something.
Gabriel's eyes slowly opened, a bright white light shone on top of his face – as if he was going through surgery at a one sided hospital. His head slowly turned to the side, only to discover a winged Mercy tinkering with a large machine attached to the ceiling. It looked like the top of her Caduceus staff except it was enlarged to around 50 times the size.
"What…is that thing?"
"Fuck…I hope this thing works!" Angela cried as she transferred the machine directly over Gabriel's motionless body.
"I hope the transferred healing beams were worth it!"
Angela walked towards a contraption, piled with levers and buttons. She took one last gaze towards Gabriel, his eyes heavy and worn – his skin was pale and lifeless. She pulled a heavy lever.
*Clank*
The machine burred, a large, bright beam of yellow and white light bursted itself into the core of Gabriel's body. An ecstasy of blurred memories gushed through his head, for a machine that was attempting to revive him – this was causing more pain than any man had ever endured in his lifetime.
"RAAAAAAAH!" Gabriel shouted through clenched teeth. It was unbearable, as if your body was being torn from the inside out. The beam was blinding – causing Mercy to shield her eyes whilst her hand was still clasped around the lever. The heart rate monitor beside Gabriel's bed was buzzing like crazy; it was stirring in countless vertical spirals indicating a critical condition.
Reyes was quiet, his screams were toned and his face lay still and emotionless. The monitor beside him ceased all motion and noise. Only the faint sounds of a dying patient remained in the room, accompanied by the whirring screech of the machine that was meant to keep him alive.
*Beep*
…
…
…
*Beep*
"No…not like this." The Swiss woman muttered beneath her breath with teary eyes. She cranked the lever to the absolute bottom, causing the machine to overload with a godlike beam striking directly into the man's core. His eyes shot open, the monitor beside him buzzing like crazy.
"RAAAAAAGGGHH!" He shouted with an emboldened roar. The machine cracked and dented, ultimately overloading to the point where it exploded – a white flash of light was all that remained from this dream.
Reyes shot himself upward; he was sweating and panting uncontrollably causing the friction of the bed to wake his accomplice.
"What's wrong Gabriel?" Amèlie asked with deep concern. Gabriel turned his head with an anxious face before ultimately calming down and shaking his head.
"It's…it's nothing Amèlie…I uh- sorry for waking you up."
"You're sweating like crazy, don't tell me it's nothing." Amèlie replied in a sharp tone. Reyes grunted as he slowly placed his head back over the pillow and exhaled in a deep malicious breath. The room was dark and the absence of light was compensated with the natural bloom of the round moon hovering against the window. Gabriel's hands clenched and his teeth grinded against each other as he slowly closed eyes – attempting to ignore the woman beside him.
"Gabriel!" Amèlie impatiently thwarted as she forced his body to face hers. "Tell me what's on your mind this instant! I'm not the kind of woman that you could just stay silent towards!"
"Amèlie…" Gabriel grunted, "The things that linger in my head aren't your concern…"
"You don't trust me…is that it?" Amèlie cried.
"No…it's not that." Reyes replied as he lifted his body upright.
"It's just…difficult."
"Then talk to me about it Gabriel." Amèlie replied – placing her hands over his. He looked down at her action, and then lifted his head up to face her. God she was innocent, beautiful and full of life. How could he never notice that gorgeous face while they were back in Talon's headquarters?
Gabriel paused for a few moments before finally breaking towards the woman sitting beside him.
"Alright…" Reyes began.
"It's about me and Overwatch…I just don't know anymore."
"What do you mean?" Amèlie asked with the upmost curiosity.
"Ever since the incident in Switzerland I've made it my primary goal to eradicate every single Overwatch agent following the Petras Act. It's been my thrive, my pleasure and my damn duty Amèlie. But now…I don't know."
"You've made a vendetta towards Overwatch? But why?"
"Corruption, insubordination and most of all – Betrayal. I was betrayed Amèlie, by my superiors, by the UN…and by my closest friends."
"Gabriel…"
"They pinned it all on ME! Those fucking bastards! It wasn't my fault…it's not." Reyes was shattered completely. He didn't know where he aligned anymore – he was meant to be an avenging angel of Death, correcting the wrongs left behind from Overwatch's dark sector. But now, after remembering his desolate past. What the hell was he now?
"But that's all in the past, right now I guess I'll have to find Angela – fix whatever side effects Talon placed into you, and maybe while she's at it she can make me normal again."
"Yet you don't even know where she is. She could be anywhere."
"I know, that's the bit where I'm stuck at. And the only viable lead we have on her is a fucking folder hiding in that Pedo's desk."
Amèlie gave him a blank expression, confused to what the wraith was implying.
"I'm talking about the Vice-Chairman Amèlie?"
"What? He knows where Angela is?"
"Yeah…should've blown his brains out and took the damned thing."
"…What stopped you?"
Reyes paused as he turned his head towards the woman, eager to finally engage in a conversation towards an understanding companion.
"Talon was onto you Amèlie, apparently you were slipping away from their control. So the good Vice-Chairman offered me the information on Angela, in exchange I would have to report any findings directly to him. I was suspicious of this request from the beginning and never took it seriously…but when I found out it was you Amèlie, he could go fuck himself."
His intentions seemed pure and convincing. As if he was implying his protective stature over the woman beside him, and this was a warm welcome for the former assassin.
"You really did that for my sake? Even though it intervened towards your true goal?"
Reyes nodded with a deep sigh. His eyes glistened with life and color, how could anyone think he was dead? And how could anyone know that the shadowy figure, the Angel of Death, Lucifer's spear was a remorseful man representing himself as the victim to a more weary and mysterious cause.
Amèlie brushed her hand across his bearded face, turning his head to face hers. His features were broad and tanned; his eyes were innocent and warm – like a cat that yearns for attention. She reminisced the words he had described himself earlier during the outbreak in Belgium and shook her head, perching her lips with a smile.
"You're not a monster Gabriel, you're not a freak. You're a man, one with emotions, morals and judgment. No one, man or machine can take that away from you. Remember that."
That smile, it was beautiful. Everything about her was beautiful. Gabriel placed his hand on top of hers, returning the warm smile.
"Thanks Amèlie. That means a lot to me, it really does."
"Of course Gabriel…anytime."
An awkward aura of tension filled the room as the two still resided on the bed, motionless and confused.
"Guess…we should be getting up now, hehe." Gabriel chuckled with an anxious tone.
"So soon?"
"It's 5:30, seems like a good time. Besides aren't you hungry?"
Amèlie shook her head, confident in her decision.
"No. I suppose one of the obscure advantages of being under Talon's control is to have little to no feeling of the need for food." Her face stretched with a smug expression, however shortly after the face turned into an embarrassed guilt.
A small rumble could be heard underneath the blanket, yearning for something to be consumed. Amèlie's face turned from light orchid to a bright pink.
"Riiight…no offence, but I'm gonna call bullshit on that statement." Reyes laughed as he descended off the bed and walked towards the door.
"Don't worry Amèlie, I'm not that hopeless at cooking." And with that he walked down the stairs towards the kitchen.
"I don't think so, I wouldn't want you to poison breakfast with your absurd cooking. You weren't exactly famous for your cuisine." Amèlie muttered to herself with a playful jest, shooting herself off the bed and walked down the stairs.
Talon's Central Committee
The room was silent as a suited individual turned his head to face the Vice-Chairman, an aroma of fear engulfed the space as he opened his mouth.
"V-Vice-Chairman. We…regret to report that the reconnaissance teams have found zero traces of the operatives known as 'Reaper' and 'Widowmaker'. All public transport and airport systems have no record of such individuals, every building and every sewer has been scoured yet no results have appear-"
"Do you mean to say that these two have vanished from the city?" An abrupt man interrupted.
"We…don't know, we are still discovering their whereabouts and other possible solute-"
"That's enough…" The VC answered, impatient from the constant rambling.
"I believe that I know the reason to this complicated question. We are dealing with the Reaper gentlemen, a mercenary with unbelievable power. And I truly mean unbelievable."
"Are you meaning to say we're dealing with…superstition Vice-Chairman?"
"Who knows? However that does not interest me, until now he was a very useful tool to Talon's operations, now the appearance of Larcroix has changed his perspective to Talon drastically. Huh, who knew Reaper would be Gabriel Reyes, ex-Commander of Overwatch and Blackwatch. Fate is cruel…"
"What are you implying Vice-Chairman?"
"Dr. Angela Ziegler is who Reaper was looking for in exchange for his services to Talon. The doctor can be just what we need to lure the rabbit from its burrow."
The committee looked at each other, small chatter and minor conversations broke out quietly amongst the room.
"Quiet…preparations will be arranged to identify, apprehend and safely transport Dr. Ziegler over to Talon's main headquarters. This is a simple plan with a simple purpose, gentlemen."
"Should we not expose the mercenary and Larcroix to the public?"
The VC shook his head, "Negative, even if we did; Talon wouldn't benefit from it. Instead it would just confuse the population instead of fueling our true purpose."
The room once again erupted in small desolate chatter. Soon dimming from the VC's signal.
"Once again gentlemen may I remind you, leave Reyes and Larcroix to me."
Los Angeles, 6:25 am
"We get it…you cook." Reyes shook his head in defeat as Amèlie scooped up the plate in front of him and stacked it on top of hers, walking towards the sink. She turned the valves of the sink, rinsing the dishes in front of her whilst peering over her shoulder – a satisfied smirk brushed against her face.
"Oh, once you're in a relationship these skills must be essential. Speaking of which, isn't about time you found someone in your life Gabriel?"
He stared at her with contempt eyes. Yeah it was about time he started looking for someone, and that someone is none other than you.
"Yeah I should, damn it Amèlie I love you. Why? Why did you love him instead? What did you see in that oaf?" Is what Reyes would've wanted to say directly to Amèlie's face.
"Ha! That's a thought. I don't really think that's possible unfortunately."
"Oh?" The woman replied, placing the dishes aside and strolled towards the dark figure, sitting opposite to him over the kitchen table.
"And why not?"
Reyes looked down at the table, releasing a small chuckle before returning his gaze towards the orchid woman across him.
"Well…it's me we're talking about. Who would want to get in a relationship with a guy like me, with my history?"
"I would." Amèlie smiled.
"You're only saying that." Reyes shook his head.
"No…I'm not."
"R-really?" He couldn't believe it; if this was real then he might as well spit it out instead of holding his feelings in.
"If…if that's the case. Then I just want you to know Amèlie. You are the most remarkable woman I've ever met, ever since Gèrard introduced you to me, there was always something about you that I will never forget."
Fucking hell, was that the right move? Just unloading these sudden feelings right after? The outcome to this was undecided, and the tension was building excruciatingly slow.
The two former Talon agents looked at each other with concerned eyes, each divulging the information they just recently received. Reyes slowly reached for the bone mask sitting close to him, placing it over his face as if it was a sign of embarrassment.
"Gabriel…"
"Fuck…"
"I just want you to know…that what you said was very sweet…and…"
"Way to go Reyes, feelings were never meant for you in the first place."
"…I would have it no other way."
Gabriel looked up to find the woman smiling with absolute passion, quiet tears formed in her eyes as they fixed themselves directly over the black, hollow pits of his mask.
She paced towards the wraith, cupping her hands around the white mask. Her hands reached beneath it, ascending the façade off Gabriel's face.
"If what you said was true, and you absolutely meant it. Then I must admit, that I in turn might have fallen for you. Mon amour."
A silent pause hung in the air, however it was comfortable and understanding. The two looked at each other, both of them struggling to restrain themselves any longer. They closed their eyes, parted their lips and collided against each other. An event that Gabriel and Amèlie for that matter would never have thought possible, but it happened.
Their tongues forced themselves into each other's inner mouths, twisting and turning. At first it was meant to be a conserving kiss, however it soon turned into a heated tension between the two former Talon agents. Reyes slowly pushed himself towards her body, falling off the chair in which they were sitting on and pinning her against the floor. Amèlie squealed in surprise, yet yearned her eyes seductively towards the dark figure hovering over her.
"Amèlie…" Reyes whispered against her ear, nibbling the tender flesh. She groaned in ecstasy, biting her lower lip and balling her pinned fists. She turned the wraith in full force, sending him to the bottom, resulting in the sniper being on top.
"Essai plus dur mon amour." Amèlie murmured towards her partner, a devilish smile brushing itself against her lips. He had no idea what she was saying; yet his mind was uncomfortable and defeated. He had never thought that this gorgeous woman would actually fall for him, he had never felt so excited, he had never felt so torn, and as the orchid woman brushed her hand against his cheek – his caressing the back of her latex uniform. He had never felt so…vulnerable.
