Rubble cleared, and Junkrat was hacking and coughing, doubled over as the impact of the explosion burned his lungs. The bomb had gone off a little closer than he intended, and there were definitely more than a few new bleeding scrapes and gouges on his face, arms, and torso. Pilar'd fix him right up, wouldn't she? Hell, she'd done it last time they'd escaped the authorities in Madrid, she could do it now!
Rubbing his eyes, which watered due to the dust in the air, he straightened up, feeling his back crack unpleasantly in several places. As far as he could tell, the fuckers were gone, and they were in the clear to get the fuck out of there. Turning his shifty gaze to his partner, he was pleased to see that Roadhog had hardly endured any damage; the big lug was pretty sturdy, after all. There was a reason he kept him around.
Brushing rubble out of his hair, Junkrat shook his head wildly, clearing his head as best as he could. Their shit was somewhere around here, wasn't it? Roadie would not, for sure, but as far as he knew, they'd have one less member to their little party. That damned omnic of Pilar's was out of their hair, finally, and while he could stand him for the smallest amount of times forher sake, he would have liked nothing more than to blow the hunk of metal to pieces. Still, she'd probably be upset about it. He didn't like seeing her upset.
"Roight, Roadie, where did ya hide that bike of yers? We might have an extra passenger…Caterpillar? Ya'll be okay ridin' in the side–" His gaze flashed to behind him, where Pilar was, not moments earlier, yet in her stead was an expansive pile of rubble. Yellow eyes widened as he suddenly dove to the wreckage, heaving the debris from the alleyway. Body vibrating, his mind was racing toward all sorts of conclusions, the worst of which his lil'caterpillar had been crushed by his own, brilliant idea. Shit, shit shit. Roadie would kill him, wouldn't he? He was always suggesting that Junkrat try a different approach–explosives could only get them so far, and yet….
Suddenly, he was heaved from the ground, and he flailed as large hands pulled him away from the pile he'd been digging through. A growl escaped him as he clawed at Roadhog's hands to let him go; did the lug not understand what had just happened? They lost her, likely under the blast of the building, and it was his fault. Damn it, damn it, damn it. You bloody idiot, you should have made sure she was out of the way!
Of course, he'd not thought about it. When explosives were involved, they were usually the only thing on his mind. God, he loved the sound of buildings shattering, the light that the bombs made. The destruction left in his wake. It was brilliant; there wasn't a lot that could compare to the beauty of detonation, and yet…
He felt his mismatched feet hit the ground, followed by a sharp smack to the side of his head. Cursing loudly, Junkrat clutched the side of his face as he stumbled backward, only to be held in place by Roadhog, who threatened to raise his hand again if he did not focus.
"She got away." His words were hissed through his mask as he shook Junkrat, bringing him back from another mental break. A man of little words, Roadhog knew when it was the right time to say them, and when his partner was on the verge of mindless destruction–which was not far from the norm–something had to be done before he seriously hurt himself.
"She–?"
"Down the alley, over the rubble."
Though Junkrat's features were far from pleased, there was still a ray of hope, followed quickly by anger. He seemed to vibrate, before tearing himself from Roadhog's grip, returning him to the wreckage before them. It wouldn't be easy to climb; Junkrat had done more damage than he anticipated, which he would have been pleased about in any other circumstance. Bushy brows furrowed as he rubbed his stubbly chin in thought; there might have been more than enough strength between the two of them to clear a path big enough for Roadhog to get through, but that would take time–time Pilar probably didn't have.
His tongue poked out of his mouth, and chewing on it, his eyes flashed from side to side, until they fell on a ladder, fixed to the side of the building by which they stood. Junkrat had barely glanced at Roadhog when he'd bounded forward, latching onto the first rail, pulling himself up cautiously. From below, he heard Roadhog groan, staring at the ladder as though his feet were meant to be on the ground, rather than climbing on a structure that very well might break under his weight.
Climbing as quickly as he could–his leg proved to make it more difficult–Junkrat glanced over his shoulder as Roadhog watched him, and he sighed, giving his partner a defeated, frazzled sort of look.
"Roadie, I need ya, mate. I can't do this alone."
Perhaps he could, but Roadhog was just as important to their family as Pilar was, and he didn't know what exactly she would be up against–two people could only do so much when your enemy was a dozen omnics, and a half-dozen Talon agents on top of that.
He contemplated for a moment, before following suit, lifting his hefty figure onto the ladder. As he swung over the edge of the building, landing on the roof with a thump, Junkrat could hear the ladder groan under Roadhog's weight, and his fingers began to tap incessantly against the edge of the building, nearly hanging over it as he ushered Roadhog to rush. Though slightly annoyed with him, Roadhog did quicken his pace, clambering over the edge, his belly doing one hell of a job with getting in the way.
"Which way did ya say she went?" he asked, hunched over slightly, his fingers picking at a spot on his chin, his other hand hovering over his frag launcher, ready to draw it, should he need it. "Couldn't have gotten far, could she?"
Roadhog wasted no time in shoving Junkrat in the right direction, and they were off, listening for any hint that Pilar might be anywhere nearby. Every now and then, Junkrat would look off the edge of the building, in case they missed something, below. All seemed clear, until he caught glance of a man, dressed all in black, rushing below, from a path that would lead them straight ahead. It eased Junkrat slightly to know that he was likely running form wherever Pilar might be, and his pace quickened as much as his leg would allow. The fellow looked shady…he swore he saw the very same symbol on his uniform that Pilar had seen in the note from before….
A cry rang out, a pained scream that had Junkrat stopping in his tracks as his heart stopped, nearly causing Roadhog to topple over him. It was not a familiar sound to come with that voice; he never knew Pilar to cry out like that when in danger…it could only mean…
"Fuck's sake, they got her!" he growled, anger rising, from seemingly nowhere, within him, eyes ablaze with hatred and a lust for destruction. His head was filled with a bloody haze, and a snarl tore from his lips as he shot forward, as fast as his leg would allow him. They were on a rooftop, well out of sight of the enemies beneath, and as the edge of their building came fast upon them, Junkrat was fully prepared to jump into the fray, armed or not.
Luckily for both he and Pilar, Roadhog's head was still perfectly clear, if not a tad enraged by their situation as a whole, and his meaty hand shot out, grabbing Junkrat tightly by the upper arm, before the damned fool could do anything to get both he and Pilar hurt any more than they already were. He was bleeding from his face and neck as it was, nothing life-threatening, but the last thing he needed was to lose another limb in an uncalculated decision to save a woman who would likely be hurt just as badly.
"Oi!" Feeling himself be jerked back roughly, Junkrat struggled to break free, clawing for the edge to pull himself over. It was hardly a fight for Roadhog; with a lazy tug, Junkrat was flung backwards and onto a heap on the ground at his feet, grumbling angrily when his head hit the roof.
"The hell d'ya think yer doing, Roadie?" he roared, jumping onto his feet without a second thought. The momentary distraction hardly diverted Junkrat from his goal, and he'd nearly turned around before Roadhog could grab him by his harness, pulling him roughly toward the hulking man. He cast an imposing figure over Junkrat; taller and over four times as wide, Roadhog was not a man to be trifled with, and for a brief moment, fear flashed across Junkrat's yellow eyes, though only to be replaced by stubborn determination a moment later.
"They bloody have her!" Junkrat growled, sudden bravery flowing through his veins as adrenaline seemed to overtake him. Both his hands were clasped around Roadhog's enormous forearm, clawing at the man's skin to get him to let go–this wasn't the first, nor last, time Junkrat had been in this situation, but god, this was far different than any other time.
Roadhog barely felt Junkrat tear at his skin; he shook the man roughly, a contorted growl escaping his mask, lifting his partner from the ground. "Idiot, I know." Forcing Junkrat to look at him, there was no way to tell what Roadhog felt behind the mask, and yet, it had him calming only for a moment, long enough to listen to what his partner had to say before his mind fell back to the woman below.
"You got a tire, use it," he continued, dropping Junkrat after a moment, smacking the side of his head angrily. "You run in there, you both get killed, Rat."
Junkrat's features twitched as he rubbed the side of his head, and his lip curled when his eyes flashed to the edge of the roof, hearing commotion from the alleyway below. Making out an unfamiliar woman's voice, he edged over, peeking at the scene, his fingers tapping incessantly against the concrete slab that prevented him from falling over the edge. Eyes flashing about, he could feel his entire body vibrating in anticipation; he had to do something.
Pilar was collapsed at the far end, rising weakly to her feet with the help of Relampago. Her features were enraged, stubborn–she would not go down without a fight. On the opposite end, a woman with dark hair stood, stroking that damn bull's face, before whispering something to the bloody omnic. Junkrat swore his eyes were messing with him when she disappeared into thin air, but he hardly had time to think on it when he saw the bastion units and the Talon agents closing in on Trueno, weapons aimed at Pilar.
"Fuck it."
Pushing himself up, his mind raced a million miles an hour, the fire in his eyes blazing fully. Fuck what Roadhog said, even if he was right; if Junkrat didn't get in there now, they'd be down Pilar, and he didn't like to think about what that might mean for them. For him.
Taking his frag launcher, he emptied the entire thing into the alley below, shooting wildly from the rooftops to provide an ample distraction to the enemy below. A wide, feral grin spread across his features when he heard screams of warning, and not a moment later, he was heaving the rip-tire from his back, throwing it on the ground, before launching it clear over the edge, taking a deep breath, forcing words from his mouth as loudly as his body would allow.
"FIRE IN THE HOLE!"
