If you have noticed this is the second post of Chapter 30, yeah sorry, I mistakenly thought yesterday was Wednesday.
So as a little apology, changes has been made so this is an updated one so it should be a better version than the last one.
Enjoy :D
*Over North Pacific Ocean*
"You sure you alright luv?" Lena asked again as Quillion sat down for the 6th time.
He nodded, wiping off the light sweat brewing on his brow, one hand over his stomach as the burn persists. They were not kidding when they say it is the spiciest in Korea...
Good thing that he has taken the aisle seat, or else he would have to climb over Lena to rush to the lavatories. In fact, they lucked out for their flight because the Window Seat passenger did not make it for the flight, leaving them with an extra seat in their row.
"Look, I'm sorry that I snapped at you earlier, it's just... I really need this vacation so I'd appreciate it if you are not so alert all the time"
"Don't worry about it... Old habits die hard ya know?" he sighed.
He looked at her in confusion when she giggled.
"Now you're sounding more like Jack"
"Right..."
Grabbing a magazine in front of him and flipping to the Tourism Section, the first thing he saw is a picture of Mondatta's Statue and the title bearing the words 'King's Row'.
Quickly closing the magazine, he threw it back into the pouch and let out a sigh of relief when he saw that Lena was looking out the window, but his hastiness caught her attention.
Glancing at his face and at the magazine, she put two and two together.
"It's him isn't it?" she sadly.
"Hmm? Him? Who are you talking about? I didn't see him" he lied.
Letting out a long sigh.
"Remember what you said to me when I picked you up?" she asked.
"Err..."
He said a lot of things, which one was it?
"You said if I ever needed someone to talk to, soldier to soldier, you'll be there?"
"Oh... Oh yeah, I did say that, yes"
"I think I should let you know what happened to me last night"
Quillion began to panic, Winston and Angela specifically told him to keep her mind off of this.
"Don't worry, I won't freak out on a plane, there's plenty of people here so it's fine" she said reassuringly.
"I... Err... Sorry, I'll be right back" he said, quickly unbuckling his seatbelt and rushed to the bathroom, leaving a hurtful Lena alone in her seat.
"Ok Quillion... Breathe man, don't panic" he said to himself in the mirror.
That was close, even a reassurance cannot be taken at face value. From all his preparations, he does not know how to calm a traumatized person, let alone doing it on the plane.
After staying for what he felt like an appropriate time, he returned to his seat, where Lena is watching what seems to be a comedy movie as she is smiling and giggling.
He noticed that she has moved to the window seat.
Tapping her shoulder, she took off her headset.
"You okay?"
"Sure, you should watch this, it's pretty good" she said.
Relieved, he watched a movie before falling asleep while Lena watched movies for the duration of the flight.
*Russia: The Front*
The men cheered into the night sky when they opened the new Hard Light Crates and saw that its contents are not frozen nor broken. Everyone scrambled to grab whatever they could as the Engineers crack open more crates. Food, water, and clothes are distributed fully to each man and no man was left unwanting.
"About time those idiots back at Command finally did something about this" a soldier exclaimed, shoveling spoonfuls of meat into his mouth.
"Yeah, all it took was a little mutiny!" another shouted, followed by scattered laughter among the men.
"Careful with your words comrade, they can still shoot you right now" another shouted.
Their banter relieved their elderly Captain, who almost lost control of his company due to the last disastrous delivery from the week prior.
"If only Zarya was here, she would've kept them in line" he thought to himself before leaving the men to their meal.
The past 30 years has not been kind to the Captain's body. Though he still has the same energetic spirit, his body is now frail and wrinkly, his once jet black hair is now grey and his knees is becoming weaker every day. He was only 19 when he was conscripted and here he is again, back to the front.
He was not even supposed to be here, but due to the rapid disappearance and death of many officers, High Command decided to conscript old veterans in hopes to keep the young ones in check, depending on their mere presence and experience to inspire the men.
But though he was a recipient of the Medal "For Courage", he knew that the men care for no such thing as trinkets in the heat of battle, there is only discipline, the enemy, and themselves.
For weeks he busied them with digging multiple foxholes, trenches, and firing positions, further securing their position, to the displeasure of the men. Despite their complaints, their duties kept their minds off their situation.
Now with their lines secured and supplies re-established, High Command should finally give the order for the attack and the men can finally return to their homes.
Any day now... Once the reformed Osvoboditel' Army arrives, they will at last free their country from this war with a devastation so brutal that no Null Sector will ever hope of causing an uprising in the Motherland again.
Going up to the roof of the bunker, he took an account of his surroundings.
They are located at the strongest part of the encirclement and it would be insane for any attempts of a breakout at their position as they are the staging point for the so called 'Final Push'.
Before him are multiple barracks where the infantry stand guard, strategic kill zones and pill boxes connected by trenches have been established, further reinforced by foxholes and thousands of the state of the art PKMs. The sight reminding him of the history books he had read about the First World War.
The second line of defense are the mechanized units which are a little further behind, where most of the grounded units such as tanks and troop carriers are hidden in the snow while the Mechs patrol around the area. The firing positions for the ground units has been designed by the Captain himself. He knew from experience that the Null Sector prefers close quarter combat and a loose formation of tanks has saved the Russian armies before.
The last line of defense is the artillery. Rows upon rows of howitzers are primed towards the battlefield and the city, their guns painfully silent. If it were up to him, he would've moved the army closer so that the artillery can shell the city until it is nothing but dust, however High Command thought it will be too risky as they will be in range of the Null Sector guns as well.
Finally, he looked over to the East at the City of Perm, their once proud city now turned into the final bastion and beacon of the Null Sector's rebellion.
He does not like to be stationed out here more than the next man, especially when they were receiving horrible supplies, but for him to give the order to send young men charging into the gates of Hell is not exactly a good alternative either.
This is reminiscent to his last battle when he himself was an Osvoboditel'. He knew for a fact that their enemies will deploy their deadliest machines to die with. He shuddered as he was reminded of the sacrifices they paid for every step they took to end the last Omnic Crisis.
Grabbing a pair of binoculars, he looked towards the Watchtower, a temporary forward post where a squad of Mech pilots will observe the Null Sector and report back if an attack is coming.
"Watchtower, report" he called on his communicator.
"Nothing to report Captain, Nullifiers are patrolling as usual but nothing else"
Good, the men can have a good rest tonight with a full belly.
He saw that the Mechs are still in position and a pilot is pacing back and forth lazily, clearly bored of sitting in it for the whole day.
Putting down the binoculars, he was about to retire for the night before what he noticed some sparks flying from the Watchtower. It was so sudden that he thought he imagined it.
"Watchtower, status?"
He waited for the reply which never came.
"Watchtower? Status?"
Static.
Quickly looking towards the Watchtower again, he saw that the Mechs are exactly where they are, but the pilot that was pacing is nowhere to be found.
Looking down he saw the patrol of a Mech Squad are talking to one another, their hatches open to enjoy their vodka in the cold air.
"Pilots!" he shouted down to the squad below him, causing them to look up and quickly hiding their drinks.
"Go to the Watchtower and check it out now!" he yelled.
The Mechs squad sped towards the Watchtower, flying low to negate the glow from their thrusters.
"Maybe it is nothing, maybe they all went off to take a piss" the Captain desperately thought, his sweat frozen in the cold winds as he watched with his binoculars.
The Mechs reached the Watchtower unhindered.
"Oi! Morons! You all passed out from drinking?" the squad leader called, his coms linked to the Captain who is listening intently.
He saw the pilots peer into the cockpits of the other Mechs for a moment before they backed up suddenly.
"What did you see?" he asked.
"Retreat! Retreat comrades!" the squad leader commanded, activating his thrusters.
"What do you see?" the Captain shouted.
The Watchtower exploded and the flames consumed everything that it touches.
Soldiers poured out of their bunkers at the sound, horrified at pillar of fire that appeared out of nowhere.
Then the ground began to tremble as the sound of a thunderous stampede crackled through the silent night.
Their morale was further tested at the very sight of what follows.
Behind the flames came the renewed Null Sector army.
Three Titans, surrounded by Orbiters, march across the battlefield in glorious, terrifying splendor, the ground trembling with their every step.
Their vanguard is led by hundreds of Behemoths galloping directly towards them, their hulking mass kicked off the snow, creating a ghostly image of a roaring tide.
And finally, the Nullifiers that must've numbered in the thousands filled the gap between the Titans and the Behemoths, their guns raised and charging at them.
The Captain froze in fear at the sight, how could anyone or anything stand against that?
He was about to order a retreat when he remembered that if they fail to hold the line now, their enemies will have a direct route to Moscow behind them. And no one is there to stop them.
"Captain! Orders!"
He looked down and saw hundreds of fearful men staring at him, desperate for guidance.
"To your posts! Man the guns! Fight comrades!" the Captain bellowed, pulling out his pistol.
The army quickly ran to their posts, clambering into their foxholes and trenches, some didn't have time to put on their Personal Shield Generators as they power up their weapons.
"Artillery! Fire at will!" the Captain commanded as he slammed the coordinates to them through his arm pad.
Their guns roared and mighty ordnance rain down with punishing fury, scores of Omnics were destroyed in the first few volleys. Metal and wires flew in every direction with every shot. But they kept coming.
The Null Sector began forming barriers as they advance, most disappearing under the Russian shells whilst the Titan's maintain its integrity.
The infantry waited, their hands trembling at the sight of the advancing army, fighting down the instinct to just drop their weapons and run with every agonizing second. They stayed silent until their enemy stepped into the killzones.
"Fire your weapons comrades! Fire!"
The trenches came alive, sending a hellish payload into the advancing Omnics, lighting up the darkness with thousands of rounds of brass, steel and plasma, which saw the destruction of multiple Behemoths and Nullifers.
Yet they advanced, their pace unhindered by the possibility of death or pain, driven by a programming that the Omnics believe makes them superior.
Once in range, the Null Sector returned an equally devastating attack. Plasma bolts skirted through the air and peppered the Russians with deadly accuracy and pulse grenades rained down into their trenches, killing scored of infantrymen within seconds.
"Man the PKMs! None of them are to be silent!" the Captain ordered everyone.
He did not need to tell them twice, they knew once the machine guns stop, it will be the end of the front lines as they know it.
"Captain! Skirmishers at the right flank!" a voice called in the coms.
Tearing his eyes away from the battle before him, he turned his binoculars to the right flank and saw the anti-aircraft guns have already engaged the incoming attack. So numerous are the Skirmishers that it looked like a cloud of locusts.
He also noticed that they are speeding towards the artillery, completely ignoring the anti-aircraft guns.
"Mechs! Skirmishers coming from the South! Protect the artillery!"
Mech Battalions flew up to meet the threat and the night sky exploded as they competed for aerial superiority. The anti-aircraft crews had to stop firing as they could no longer identify who is friend or foe as flaming metals and bodies fell like rain.
The Captain looked back to the main battle before him and saw a desperate situation.
Men began slipping on the millions of casings scattered across the floor, the snow began to melt under the ever increasing heat, making resupplying slow across the trenches as the ground turn to mud. Many guns fell silent and faced with a wall of Behemoths inching nearer with every second, the men began abandoning their post.
Running down to the front in person, he activated his shield to full power stood onto a platform and shot a flare into the sky, illuminating his position so that both friend and foe can see him.
"Fight on comrades!" he roared above the sounds of war, his pistol barking towards his enemies and continually shouting encouragements to everyone around him, promising victory and not allowing the idea of defeat enter their minds.
Inspired by his courage, they fought on harder than they ever have before, braving the increasingly powerful attacks they received in turn.
Then their world exploded.
The front lines came into range of the leading Titan. Huge beams blazed throughout the trenches and every unfortunate souls caught in it became dust. The Captain barely avoided death as the beam penetrated the ground and destroyed one of the shallower ammunition dumps, blowing him out from its trajectory.
Dazed, the Captain looked around and saw the horrors that he never wanted to see again. Lifeless eyes, burning bodies, and crying men met his gaze everywhere he sees.
He wanted to give into his despair, he wanted to put an end to this misery right now, but he remembered that if he fails his duty now, the rest of Russia will see this horror.
Soon he felt a pair of arms lifting him to the wall. Blinking the mud out of his eyes, he saw that it is a man holding a phone that is attached to the radio that he is wearing.
"Captain! The Titan is in range! Tank crews are requesting permission to engage!"
The Captain stared. They could not be this stupid.
"Captain? Permission to-"
"Fire your guns!" the Captain ordered, annoyed that they would even need to ask such a stupid question.
Hidden tanks fired unanimously into the nearest Titan, their giant Particle Cannons blew a hole straight through its barrier and pierce its head, destroying it immediately. The men cheered as it collapses which hampered the advance of the other Titans.
Commanding the Private to drag him back onto high ground, he took a quick assessment with the current situation of the battle.
Though they destroyed most of the vanguard, the Behemoths reached the Russian lines and began clearing the trenches. Encouraged by the recent destruction of a Titan, it became a valiant melee as men stood their ground against the machines, but every heroic attempt is proven futile as their bodies are flung high into the air for all to see.
"Heavy Assault Units! Forward!" the Captain shouted, forced to use their elite troops that he kept in reserve.
In a blink of an eye, the Behemoths were lifted above the ground and their bodies began to crumple in multiple gravity bombs.
"Together we are strong!" multiple voices cried out as they charged forward, their Particle Cannons slicing the Behemoths apart.
Though not as skilled as their leader, Zarya's men are still capable soldiers, braving and almost welcoming all incoming attacks as they activate their Particle Barriers, feeding their Particle Cannons with more energy with every shot they receive.
"Watch our backs comrades!" one of them cried out as they marched forward in unison, bearing the brunt of the Nullifier's attack which inevitably came, giving time for the Russians to reform the line.
"Captain, this is Sergeant Mikhail, we have achieved aerial superiority, shall we engage the ground units?"
"No, stay up there and make sure those flying dishwashers do not get to the artillery"
"Yes Captain"
The battle raged throughout the night and lasted until morning, ending with the total destruction of the Null Sector army saved a single Titan that returned back to Perm and disappearing from their sight in its tall buildings.
The Russians looked towards the city with a grimmer attitude. From a single city, the Null Sector was able to construct three Titans and an army that almost broke through their strongest position in a single night is a troubling revelation for the men.
What else lies withing those buildings?
They suffered uncountable casualties as many are victims of the Titans and the Behemoth's, which left only dust and pieces. The Mech Battalion has been effectively cut in half and are in desperate need of replacements whilst the Army has used almost all of its ammunition.
Their biggest loss however, is the death of their Captain who was tragically killed near the end of the battle by a stray bullet. Soldiers whisper of a new class of Null Sector Snipers that wore red robes and drops into the battlefield in a cloud of smoke, but this rumor is quickly dismissed as hallucinations from PTSD.
In this pyrrhic victory, the message of the Null Sector is loud and clear.
Any hopes of ending the war is far from over.
*Venice: Talon Base*
"What are we going to tell him?" a nervous staff asked as the two walk towards Ogundimu's office.
"We? You the one that should tell him!" the other countered, quickly wiping off the sweat with his handkerchief.
The two squabbled until they are outside of his office, both too scared to proceed.
"Come in" his voice rang out of his office, making them both jump, were they so loud?
Slowly opening the door, they saw that he is sitting behind his desk reading a book.
"Sorry to disturb you Mr Ogundimu, we just want to give our report"
"And…?" Ogundimu asked as he lazily turn the page as they stood before him.
"We… We lost track of Sombra sir"
Ogundimu said nothing for a while as he deliberately reads the first paragraph of the page, causing the other two to tremble in fear.
"And how did you lose her?"
"I… You see sir… We were just going through the procedures as usual and as you have requested, we began surveilling her and her movements and-"
He closed his book with a loud thump, cutting the man off.
"I am going to ask you one last time. How did you lose her?"
"We… We were just going through the procedures and-"
"You, how did you lose her?" Ogundimu said, pointing to the other.
"She hacked our system and teleported away before we could regain control" he said quickly, casting an annoyed glance at his colleague.
"Do you have any idea where she could be or what her motives are?"
"We have looked through her belongings but we could not find any leads, maybe except one"
"What might that be?"
"We believe she has in contact with someone in Overwatch"
"Why would you say that?"
"We found a small message and we deduce that she has been communicating with a pilot who will be picking up two Overwatch Agents a few days after Christmas somewhere in England"
"Let me see the message"
The two glance at each other concerningly.
"Err... The message is... Vulgar sir..."
Ogundimu gave them a dark look and they immediately pass the report to them.
At first the message seems like a normal sex chat material. Pictures of a nude woman has been sent out to a man who seems to be cheating on his wife online.
He was about to kill the two men before him for this nonsense when he saw the cryptic message at the bottom of the page that peaked his curiosity.
"Hey babe, I'm picking up my boss and the caveman up from Blighty in a few after Christmas, I'm thinking that I'll have my 'Christmas Gift' before we go back to work ;)"
"Didn't you say she can manipulate your timetable at any point? We will get caught"
"She's meeting her girlfriend so it'll be fine, they haven't met in a couple so they will be together the whole time"
"You mean Reddie?"
"The very same, so we can enjoy Christmas at the hotel in Kings Row, so we will be fine"
"If that's the case Loxyboy, I'm going to suck your -"
The message continues in derogatory fantasies which Ogundimu put down.
"I agree that this seem to match our current suspicions except for this 'caveman'" he said.
"Who is going to London tomorrow?"
"Widowmaker, Sigma, SS28, and Moira sir"
"And what about the drug lord?"
"They have already reached and told us that they will not attack until we do"
"Send a message to Mauga, when the task is done, kill them all, they are of no use to us or the world"