Chapter 16: The Ole Times
Three robed figures walked down the cobblestone street, managing to blend with the crowd. All around them, people chattered about in old German, using dialects and words that have not been used for centuries. A trio of knights on horseback suddenly galloped into view, causing the robed figures to look up. The knights had a crest of a bottle with gunpowder barrels underneath it on their shields, catching the robed figure's eyes. The knight at the front gave a shout, causing the crowded streets to part, letting them gallop across. A few peasants started to yell at the knights from the sidelines and throw stones at them, which bounced off their shining armor. One of the knights noticed and ruthlessly aimed his crossbow at one of the protesting peasants. He fired, impaling one of them in the chest. The crowd watched as the peasant fell to the ground with a sickening thump, but all they could do is keep their heads down and angrily swear at the knights under their breath. After that, the three knights came upon the three robed figures. The knight in the front shouted at them in German, gesturing for them to move aside. No response. The knight's face flashed with anger as he pulled out his sword, ready to chop them to bits.
Before he could react, however, the robed figure in the center immediately pulled out two shotguns and turned into smoke, letting his robes fall to the ground. All the peasants immediately burst into a panic at the sight of this and ran away, leaving the three knights in shock. The ball of smoke quickly reformed into a person right in the middle of all three knights. "DIE! DIE! DIE!" A spray of shotgun blasts emerged from the hazy figure, immediately knocking the knights off their horses, putting big holes in their chests before killing the horses themselves afterwards. Once the onslaught of shotgun pellets ended, Reaper emerged from the smoke, looking dissatisfied. "God damn it! This is the fifth time I had to blow our cover to save our asses!" The robed figures lifted their hoods, revealing Medic and a rather sheepish looking Mercy.
"I'm sorry! I didn't hear vhat zhe knight vas saying! Did ve really need all zhese robes!?" Mercy sighed. "But at least I'm not as bad as you Diedrich! You just had to blow our cover a few days ago in zhe Chinese harbour!" Medic's expression suddenly turned defensive.
"Vell, excuse me for defending myself from a Chinese highvayman! It vas either to hand over my prized bonesaw or to stab him vith it! Besides! Remember vhen Reaper got us in trouble vith zhose cavemen!?"
"What!? Come on! I get a bit twitchy if I don't kill something every so often! Did you really think that sickly savage was going to have a decent future?"
"You killed him in front of Angela's eyes! I have a problem vith it because you really disturbed her! Besides, killing zhat one caveman turned zhe entire tribe of savages on us!"
"STOP!"
Reaper and Medic turned around to face Mercy, who was clearly annoyed. "Ve still have a big task at hand. BLU Spy is definitely in zhis time era! I'm sure of it!" Mercy exclaimed.
"You said that about the last 8 goddamn time eras we visited..." Reaper groaned. "But either way, we need to get out of here before they send more knights to investigate." Medic and Mercy nodded as they followed Reaper into a dark alleyway, vanishing from sight.
"Say what now!?" The lord's shout echoed throughout the hall, catching everyone's attention. The knight knelt before the lord, looking very humble.
"Tis' true, Lord Degroot! A demon from the very depths of hell has descended upon three of our knights and savagely murdered them in a swirl of black brimstone!" Lord Degroot leaned in closer.
"The peasants? Did th' devil do bloody anythin' to the peasants?" He asked impatiently.
"None were killed. Only the three knights." The moment he heard that, Lord Degroot pounded his fist on his throne's armrest in anger.
"Ye mean ta tell me that this bloody 'demon' killed members of my virtuous guard instead of doing its bloody job and pulling those sinful commoners down to hell!?" Lord Degroot stood up from his throne. "Call the church! Tell them ta go wit' my knights in this effort to hunt down this rogue demon! I'm sure that both God and Satan themselves tarry a pleasure to see a wrongful demon punished!" The knight stood up from his kneeling position and nodded before running out of the hall. Lord Degroot turned to the rest of his guard. "Fortify Degroot Keep! I know that this demon is sure to make a move on me! Send orders to kill off any suspicious commoners! The demon could have disguised itself as one of those filthy pigs!"
"YES, MY LORD!" Degroot's guard responded as they all ran into action. Once everyone had left the royal hall, Lord Degroot walked down from his throne and into a stairwell nearby. He climbed up the stairs to the master bedroom and opened the door. There, a beautiful German woman with stunning blond hair sat at the foot of his bed. She took no notice of Lord Degroot as he came in and started to speak to her in German.
"Lady Ziegler…" Lord Degroot coaxed. Lady Ziegler's eyes suddenly flared with anger.
"I told you Degroot! I will never marry you!" She shouted. She then stood up defiantly. "You are a monster and a tyrant! You imprisoned my people and kidnapped me against my will to live with you!" Lord Degroot ignored Lady Ziegler's outburst, chuckling softly instead.
"Please, milady. Call me Alastair. Besides, I have even graver matters to deal with at the moment. Matters that might put you and me in harms way." Lady Ziegler suddenly looked a bit more interested. "A demon has been sighted in the streets of Berlin. It has murdered three of my valiant and blessed knights already-"
"Well good for it!" Lady Ziegler scoffed, taking Lord Degroot by surprise. "If this "demon" has the mind to target your wretched guard, It might just be a guardian angel instead!" Lord Degroot angrily walked towards Lady Ziegler and slapped her across the face, sending her sprawling towards the hard, wooden floor.
"I want you to think carefully about what you just said, milady." Lord Degroot backed out of the bedroom and shut the doors, leaving Lady Ziegler crying on the floor. When was she to be free of this madman? When will she see her family again? When will her country be free from this tyrannical rule?
"Vhat's vith zhis crowd?" Medic asked. Medic and Mercy were in a massive crowd of German peasants, all grudgingly listening to a knight at the front speak.
"Don't ask me." Mercy responded, trying to peek over the crowd. "You're zhe taller one here!"
"Here." Medic dropped down low and scooped up Mercy onto his shoulders, turning a few heads. As Mercy clung onto Medic's head for balance, she got a clearer view of what was happening.
"Mein gott!" Mercy exclaimed. She motioned for Medic to set her back down. Once he did, he noticed the distressed look on her face. "Zhis is a public execution!" Medic's eyes widened.
"Vhat!? Zhat sounds like somezhing ve need to investigate!" Medic and Mercy pushed their way through the dense crowd, wading their way towards the front. Once they reached the front of the crowd, however, they found that a line of knights blocked their path.
"Grah! Schweinhunds!" Medic whispered urgently to Mercy as he desperately tried to peek over the knights to see the main event. "I can't see anyzhing!"
"I can!" Mercy piped up. Medic looked over and saw her peeking through the gaps in between the knights, as she was short enough to do that without looking too suspicious. She looked closely through the gap and tried to describe what she's seeing. "I see a knight and a priest standing over a peasant on a pyre, and...oh my…" Mercy backed up suddenly with a shocked expression on her face. "Zhis isn't any execution… zhis is a exorcism!"
"Vhat!?" Medic exclaimed. "Vait! Listen closely to vhat zhe crowd is saying!" Medic and Mercy both went quiet, trying to listen to the various conversations around them, all spoken in German.
"No way is Amadeus the real demon!"
"I'd say that this is no demon!"
"Yeah! If it's targeting Degroot's guard, then it must be an angel if anything!"
"Do you think that this is a sign from god? That Degroot's long reign of terror is at an end?"
"I hope so, but it looks like poor Amadeus isn't going to see it."
Medic was shocked. Degroot? Devils? He suddenly pulled on Mercy's arm and lead her through the crowd. "Ve need to go back to zhe inn and meet up vith Reaper. I have a bad feeling zhat ve have landed in a very dangerous situation."
"Really? How so?" Mercy asked. Medic looked back at her seriously.
"If ve make one wrong move, I fear zhat ve might vipe Demoman from existence…"
"So, ya're the assassin, correct?" Lord Degroot asked. A hooded person was kneeling before him.
"Yes, Lord Degroot." The assassin replied in a french accent. "I was sent by King Louis to help the Scottish occupation of Germany." Lord Degroot smirked.
"Ye were highly reccomended ta me by Louis, ya know." The assassin shook his head.
"I didn't come because King Louis told me to, but for the chance to assassinate this "devil's" colleagues." Lord Degroot looked very surprised.
"Wait...colleagues?" He got up off his throne and walked towards the assassin with a look of suspicion on his face. "Do ya know something we dunnae be?" The assassin nodded.
"I do, but I would prefer not to say." Lord Degroot approached the assassin, standing over him menacingly.
"If ye have information about this situation, ye must tell us." He leaned in close to the assassin. "If ya don't, I will be forced to beat th' information out of-" In the blink of an eye, the assassin pulled a knife out of his robes and held it to Lord Degroot's throat, his expression immediately turning from one of overconfidence to one of terror. Degroot's guard all drew their swords, but as long as the assassin had Lord Degroot at knifepoint, there was nothing they could do.
"Listen to me, you bomb-lobbing drunk. I am the infamous assassin Pierre Ronseau. I am the being that haunts the dreams of the damned. I am death's ambassador. I am the menace of France itself. You simply do not have the right to question me about my motives." Pierre released a terrified Lord Degroot from his grasp, sending him tumbling backwards onto his throne, dazed and confused. With a flutter of his robes, he turned around and started to leave. "Do not worry. I will make sure that my targets are dead." Pierre stated before leaving through the giant doors of the royal hall, slamming the giant doors shut. Once he had walked far enough down the hall, he suddenly turned invisible and ducked into an empty room. He closed the door and decloaked, removing his disguise at the same time. "Alright Mercy, Medic, Reaper." BLU Spy stood in the room with a devilish look on his face. "It's time I stopped running." He started to put his disguise back on, the blueish gray smoke enveloping him once again. "Instead…" Once the smoke dissipated, BLU Spy stepped out once again in his picture perfect Pierre Ronseau disguise. "...allow me to start chasing after you."
"So let me get this straight…" Reaper sighed. The three of them were in a cheap inn room, where Medic was trying to explain something to the rest of them. "You're saying that we are in the middle of this…"Degroot Occupation"?" Medic nodded briskly.
"Yes, mein freund! Ve are in zhe heat of zhe Scottish occupation of Germany!" Medic exclaimed.
"I have never heard of such a zhing!" Mercy objected. "Vhere are you getting zhis information, Diedrich?" Medic pushed his glasses up.
"Demoman often tells of his family's glorious past. He never stops bragging about the royal blood in him, but zhe one zhing about his past zhat he does not like to talk about is his ancestor, Alastair Degroot." Reaper suddenly interjected for a moment.
"Wait… so you're saying…"
"Yes!" Medic responded preemptively as he gestured about like a conspiracy theorist. "If I take everyzhing I have ever heard about Alastair from Demoman and link zhem togezher, everyzhing lines up perfectly vith zhe time era ve are in right now!" Medic suddenly noticed Mercy looking a bit uncomfortable. "Do you have anyzhing to say, Angela?" Before Mercy could say a word, a german maid suddenly burst into the room without warning.
"Room service!" She exclaimed before suddenly freezing in place once she caught sight of Reaper. Everyone in the room went silent before Reaper piped up.
"What did she say?" He asked with an innocent tone. The german maid burst into a panic, screaming as she ran down the hall. Reaper sighed.
"Well, that's our cue." Reaper pulled out his shotguns and blasted the window in their room open. He quickly leapt out and transformed into smoke. Instant pandemonium erupted in the streets below as Reaper floated through the crowd. Medic and Mercy saw the chaos unfold and quickly started to rush out of the inn. Suddenly, knights and priests on horseback started to gallop in from all directions, attempting to surround Reaper. The priests approached Reaper with crosses in their hands, chanting various prayers and spells. Reaper rematerialized to deal with this new threat. "The demon has reformed! Now's our chance!" One of the priests yelled. He took out a flask of "holy" water and threw it at Reaper, soaking him in it. Of course, none of this debauchery had any effect on him. Seeing the hordes of knights and priests closing in on him, he gave an evil chuckle as he cocked his dual shotguns. Dark whisps of smoke started to radiate from Reaper, making the knights feel a little unsteady. With evil in his voice, Reaper suddenly shouted:
"DIE! DIE! DIE!"
Shotgun pellets began erupting out of Reaper's guns before anyone could react, instantly shredding the unarmoured priests. The innermost ring of knights instantly fell victim to the onslaught, causing the rest of the knights to back up in fear. Suddenly, Reaper saw a knight with a crossbow taking careful aim at him a fair distance away. The knight fired, nailing Reaper in the knee with a barbed crossbow bolt. With a cry of pain, Reaper fell to the ground, halting the shotgun pellet barrage. Seeing that now was their chance, the knights all swarmed at Reaper with a loud battle cry. Reaper assessed his current situation and decided that it was time to retreat. He quickly Shadow Stepped out of the hoard, leaving black smoke where we once was. The knights gasped and stepped back in fear, looking around for Reaper, only to see that he was nowhere to be found. Panic ensued as the knights scattered in all directions, none of them wanting to be Reaper's next victim.
A few days ago…
Degroot Keep looked all the more ominous during nighttime. Darkness shrouded the cold, stone walls, the only bits of light coming from the guard's torches. Lady Ziegler would usually be asleep at this time of the night, but instead she was gathering all the blankets, towels, rugs, and curtains in her lavishly decorated room. "Tonight is the night I break free…" She thought to herself. A smile formed on her face as she held to that thought. "No more shall I be Degroot's plaything. I will break out tonight and end his rule!" Of course, Lady Ziegler didn't know exactly how she was going to overthrow Lord Degroot, but she was determined that she must. She looked down at the massive pile of cloth that she had gathered. "Perfect. This will do." She muttered to herself.
Without another word, Lady Ziegler started to tie the ends of the cloths together, forming a long, makeshift rope. She dragged the coil of sheets towards a window and firmly tied one end to her bed's leg. With determination in her eyes, she threw her rope out the window, watching it fall to the ground below. She hoisted herself over the windowsill and dangled her legs over the perilous drop before her. She look a deep breath and started to slide down her makeshift rope, concentrating on not getting her hands friction-burnt by the sheets. After an agonizing five minutes, Lady Ziegler finally reached the ground, her hands raw from the careful sliding and her knees weak from the constant rappelling. However, she had no time to spare. Lady Ziegler made a mad dash towards the lavatory. Although there is only one way into Degroot Keep, through the front gate, there are two ways out: Through the front gate...or down the toilet and into the river below. The thought of this made Lady Ziegler grimace, but she knew that she had no other option. She already had a plan for when she escaped as well. She would first sell her lavish dress to the highest bidder for some money. Then, she would hide out on rooftops until the streets were relatively clear of Degroot's knights. The money should be enough for her to buy a horse drawn cart so she can find her family and escape to Paris where they can start their new life, away from Degroot's tyranny. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by an overpowering stench, making Lady Ziegler gag. She was at the lavatory. Her first step to freedom. Lady Ziegler grabbed the toilet seat and violently jerked it off. She peered down the toilet, which emptied straight into the valley river below. She held her breath. "This is it." Bracing for impact, she leapt down the toilet and began her 25 foot drop into the murky waters below.
A few day later…
"Ah! Zhere you are!" Medic called out to Reaper. They were both on the rooftops of Berlin, where Medic and Mercy have been hiding out while looking for Reaper after he escaped the knights. Medic ran to Reaper and closely examined him. "Hm, you seem to be healing vell after zhat encounter." Reaper shrugged.
"I just ripped the arrow out of my knee and healed it up with some of the soul orbs from the knights I killed. Nothing too special." Reaper looked around. "I don't see Angela with you, where did she get off to?" Medic pointed behind him.
"She should be vaiting for us somevhere back zhere." Medic stated. Suddenly, his eyes locked onto a familiar figure with radiant blond hair in the distance. Medic's face lit up. "Ooh, never mind! Zhere she is!" He cupped his hands around his mouth and called out to Mercy. "Hey! Over here!" The woman turned around and saw Medic. She seemed to be startled at the sight of them, but still cautiously approached. Reaper suddenly Shadow Stepped right up to her, making her fall backwards onto the roof.
"Angela, this is no time to fool around! We need to get-" Reaper suddenly paused, his threatening expression slipping off his face. He noticed the torn up rags the woman was wearing, only barely covering her body. Her hair, although still a radiant gold, was a mess. Her toes and fingertips were pale blue from the chilly October nights.
"Angela! Vhat happened to you!?" Medic had caught up with Reaper and had noticed the woman as well. He immediately took off his jacket and knelt beside the woman to shield her from the frigid autumn winds. He held the woman close in an attempt to warm her up. Medic looked into the woman's deep, azure eyes. The woman gave Medic a weak smile before promptly fainting in his arms, leaving Medic severely distraught. Reaper put a hand on Medic's shoulder.
"We need to get her some help. Now." Medic didn't respond to Reaper's urges. He couldn't take his eyes off of the woman's pale face. He couldn't hear anything but the woman's faint breathing and her distant heartbeat. Reaper sighed and smacked Medic on the back of his head, snapping him out of his shocked trance. "Come on! Do you want Angela to get better or not?" Medic regained his senses and urgently hoisted the woman onto his back.
"Cover me from zhe rooftops in case if ve get spotted, alright?" Medic asked. Reaper gave a nod and Shadow Stepped away onto a distant roof. Medic looked back at the woman. "Don't you die on me now…" He muttered before racing away to the nearest hospital.
"Diedrich! Vhere are you!?" Mercy yelled. She desperately scanned the surrounding rooftops for any sign of Medic or Reaper. An hour has passed since Medic had left her alone to find Reaper, making Mercy rather worried by now. "Maybe he tried to look for Reaper in the streets?" Mercy pondered. A worrying thought flickered into Mercy's mind. "Maybe...if he did go down to the streets, maybe he was caught by the guards!" Mercy jumped into a panic as she realized this scenario. She ran over to the side of the roof and looked down towards the streets below, desperately looking for Medic.
"Surprise." Before Mercy could even react, she was struck on the back of her head, knocking her out. Pierre Ronseau stood behind her with a cheeky smirk on his face. He latched his baton back onto his belt and beckoned to someone in the distance. "Captain Reinhardt! Come here at once!" A large, burly knight in shining armour turned around and briskly walked towards Pierre, heaving his giant war hammer over his shoulder. Pierre groaned in exasperation at the sight of Captain Reinhardt's hammer. "For heaven's sake Reinhardt. Thank god I got to Lady Ziegler before you did. You would have taken her head off with that thing." Captain Reinhardt shrugged.
"I'm not ready to leave my prized Rouquette Hammer out of any conflict I'm assigned to. It is my symbol for being the head of Degroot's esteemed guard!" Captain Reinhardt posed extravagantly with his hammer. "This city is full of rebellious scum, after all. Who knows what dangerous folk we could run into during this hunt for Lady Ziegler?" Pierre sighed.
"Of all the people Degroot could have assigned to me, why did he pick you?" Pierre muttered under his breath. He cleared his throat. "Whatever. The important thing is that we have found Lady Ziegler. I suggest you take her back to Degroot Keep at once." Captain Reinhardt nodded before hoisting Mercy onto his back. He suddenly paused and looked back at Pierre.
"Wait...why am I bringing Lady Ziegler back alone?" He asked. Pierre looked off into the distance.
"I still have to deal with the devil problem. I have two more targets left to eliminate." Captain Reinhardt gave Pierre a confused look.
"Two? I thought you told me that the devil had two other apprentices! Wouldn't that make it three targets?" Reinhardt asked. Pierre looked back at Captain Reinhardt mysteriously.
"One of the targets have been...dealt with recently." He said without taking his eyes off Mercy on Captain Reinhardt's back. "Very recently."
"Please sir! She is very weakened and needs medical attention immediately!" Medic pleaded urgently to the hospital receptionist. He gave a cold stare back at Medic.
"As I said, no money, no service. There are commoners dying every day. This won't make any difference." Medic suddenly burst into a rage and unsheathed his bonesaw from within his jacket. He pointed it at the receptionist with murderous intent. The receptionist pulled a pocket knife from his belt and aimed back at Medic. Before either of them could make a move, an onlooking priest quickly rushed in between them, holding his hands out.
"Peace gentlemen! Peace! Do not shed blood while there is a dying woman lying by your feet!" The priest turned to the receptionist and tossed a satchel of gold onto the desk. "I will pay for this woman's treatment. Please save her life." The receptionist's eyes lit up at the sight of the gold. He immediately stood up and walked from his desk.
"Follow me! We must get this woman to a bed now!" Medic rolled his eyes at the receptionist's sudden change in attitude. The two of them quickly went into the infirmary, letting Medic get an eyeful of it. Every patient in the area was carelessly placed inside this room full of beds, letting various diseases and maladies mingle together. Priests wandered from patient to patient performing useless (and even harmful) healing procedures like bloodletting via leech and even trepanning. "Here! Place the woman on this bed!" The bed that the receptionist pointed to was surrounded with people suffering from smallpox. Although Medic was immune to this primitive disease thanks to vaccinations, he wasn't going to even risk placing "Mercy" there. He spotted a bed located in the isolated corner. "Actually, how about we put her there?" Medic pointed to the bed in the corner.
"Are you insane?" The receptionist asked. "If you put her there, the priests would never get to her in time!" Medic chuckled nervously.
"Erm...it's alright! I will take care of her until the priests can...uh...treat her." The receptionist shrugged.
"Alright then. It's her life you're throwing away." Medic rushed to the bed in the corner and placed the woman as far away as possible from the other patients. He immediately took a vial of a red, glowing fluid out and poured some into the woman's mouth. He then poured the rest of it into a spray bottle and sprayed a fine, red mist over the woman's surroundings.
"There. My medigun fluid should revive Angela and keep those diseases at bay." He thought. "It's a shame I left my Medigun in the Slipstream 2.0." Medic tucked the woman in and hugged her tightly to get her body temperature up.
"Do you need anything?" Medic heard a voice ask behind him. He turned around and saw the receptionist standing behind him, an embarrassed look lingering on his face. Medic smiled and shook his head.
"No need. She's ok for now." The two of them exchanged awkward glances. There was no denying that the receptionist's sudden change in attitude was bothering both of them.
"Alright, I was slightly more interested in offering you and this woman a room after I saw the gold. That part is true…" The receptionist admitted. Medic sighed. Mankind's greed really knew no bounds. "...but after I saw you hold her in your arms with such tender care..." Medic refocused onto the receptionist. "...something happened...like a moment of realization. It felt like something awoke inside me." The receptionist reached into his pocket and took out the satchel of gold coins. He took a quarter of the coins out and tossed them to Medic. "Here. I hope this can help you two get by." Medic looked at the gold coins in his palm in wonder. This was more than enough.
"M-my god… Thank you! This will work nicely!" The receptionist responded with a flustered smile. He wasn't used to getting compliments. "In that case, I apologize for pulling a bonesaw out on you, Mister…?" Medic waited for the receptionist to respond with his name.
"Ludwig. Helmut Ludwig." The moment Medic heard this name, it took everything in him to not to completely freak out. "Hmm? Is something the matter?" Helmut asked.
"N-no! Eheheh! There is nothing wrong! I...I just had a bit of a...uh...cough! Yes! I'm not used to being in such a filthy place! Yes!" Helmut raised an eyebrow to Medic's little spaz out.
"Well, I must agree that this place is indeed filthy. If only these priests could see that their treatment methods are completely useless! I believe that putting animal parts into humans are the true solution to any malady!" Medic gasped. This was indeed who he thought it was. He must get him out of here.
"Yes, yes, animal parts, yes. Well, that was a nice little chat! If you'll excuse me, I must tend to this woman now!" Helmut nodded at Medic's request.
"Alright. Good luck with her, Mister…?"
"Diedrich Wolfe! That is my name!" Medic said rather pressingly. Helmut was a bit taken back at Medic's sudden burst of urgency, but he still left quietly nonetheless. Medic sighed in relief. Who knew what sort of adverse effects on Medic's future that little encounter has had? He sat back down and looked at the woman's face, only to see her looking right back at him!
"You saved me…" The woman whispered. Without another word, Medic leaned in close and kissed the woman on the lips, taking her by surprise. She eventually melted into the kiss as well, holding Medic's head as he held her's. Medic broke the kiss and looked into her deep, blue eyes.
"Angela...you made it!" The woman suddenly looked very confused.
"Who's...Angela? My name is Sofia Ziegler." A look of regretful realization slowly spread across Medic's face the moment those words came out of Sofia's mouth. "What's your name, my handsome hero?" Sofia leaned in close to Medic's face with a lustful expression. "All my life I've never known true love. That fiend Degroot never let me meet anyone but him...but you?" Medic could see where this was going. He backed off gently.
"My apologies. You looked a lot like my fiancée." Medic said calmly. Sofia got up out of the bed and did a sultry walk towards Medic. The rags she wore fit tightly to her body, making her look even more like Mercy. She approached Medic and buried her face in his shoulder. She pressed her breasts up against Medic's torso and looked up at him with big puppy eyes.
"You wouldn't break my heart, would you?" She tickled Medic's chin with her finger, making him blush harder. "I'm sure that I can offer much more than what your… current fiancée could." Medic took a deep breath and gently pried Sofia off of him.
"I-I'm sorry! I mustn't become attached to you! Time itself won't allow it!" Sofia's expression saddened at Medic's sharp words.
"W-why?" She sobbed gently. Before Medic could make a move, the wall behind him immediately burst open, sending him and Sofia sprawling to the floor. Medic looked up. Through the clouds of dust, he saw Reaper barely holding off the onslaught of knights with his shotguns. He had suffered multiple lacerations across his body already. He suddenly charged forward with a loud battle cry and unleashed a Death Blossom into the knight's ranks, making a large dent in their forces. Reaper dashed back into the hospital and grabbed Medic and (a very shocked) Sofia.
"Medic, the real Mercy's in trouble." Reaper croaked. Medic looked at Reaper, confused.
"Vhat!? How did you know zhat zhis isn't zhe real Angela!?" He asked in surprise. Reaper put his hand up, stopping Medic from speaking. "How do you think I got all these guards on my tail. Anyways, I'll take you to her. Just saying, this might tingle a bit." Reaper started to envelope the two of them in a cloud of dark smoke. Medic slowly felt his entire body go numb as he was assimilated into the cloud, with a very surprised Sofia Ziegler looking on. With an extreme gust of wind, the smoke cloud poured out of the hospital and disappeared into the rooftops of Berlin, leaving the knights and Sofia completely dumbfounded.
"Wakey wakey, Milady…" Mercy slowly started to regained consciousness. She grunted as she noticed the dull pain emanating from the back of her head. She opened her eyes and saw her lavish surroundings. She was on a bed in a marble walled room with exotic Acacia wood flooring. Vivid engravings within the marble lined the room. Rich furniture with plush velvet lining was placed meticulously around the room, faintly illuminated by the golden fireplace nearby. Moonlight seeped through a single, barred window. "Are you enjoying your new window?" Mercy turned and saw Lord Degroot sitting casually on a nearby chair, a goblet of wine in his hand. "Do you like your new room?" He took a small sip from the goblet. "I had my men redecorate it since your little...breakout." Lord Degroot placed his goblet onto a table and walked over to Mercy. Mercy tried to move, but found that she was chained to the bed. She noticed that she was stripped down to her underwear. Panic started to boil inside of her."W-what do you think you're doing!? Who are you!?" Lord Degroot chuckled and shook his head softly.
"Did that blow to the back of your head make you lose some memories, Sofia?" Lord Degroot climbed onto the bed and laid by Mercy's side. "I am your one and only true love, Alistair Degroot." Lord Degroot sat up and took off his kingly robes while looking at Mercy's body with lust. "I am a man of honor Sofia. I had not wanted for it to come to this." Lord Degroot threw his robes aside and undid his trousers. "I had refrained from abusing you too hard, but now I see that you think you have the audacity to try and escape from me!" Mercy squirmed around in terror, trying to throw Lord Degroot off the bed. He smirked and forcefully grabbed Mercy's breast. "Now I must do what I should have done a long time ago! Make you submit to me... completely..." Mercy started to yell out in fear, her shrill protests not affecting Lord Degroot in the slightest.
"Diedrich! Reaper! Vherever you are! HELP!" Lord Degroot stopped and backed away from Mercy.
"W-what? Where'd ye learn ta speak English?" Lord Degroot asked suddenly.
"Aaangellaaaa!" A faint voice echoed from outside. Lord Degroot turned and looked out the barred windows. He saw a dark cloud rocketing through the night sky towards him. He barely had time to back away before the cloud violently gusted into the room, knocking him off his feet. The cloud immediately dissipated, sending Reaper and Medic tumbling to the hard, wooden floor. Reaper lay on the floor, panting with exhaustion. Medic held his head and stood up, fighting the dizziness. The moment he saw Lord Degroot standing over Mercy with his pants off, Medic flew into a rage and unsheathed his bonesaw, pointing it menacingly at Lord Degroot.
"D-Diedrich! You came!" Mercy exclaimed with relief. Medic briskly walked to her side and slashed the rope holding her in one clean slice. Mercy got off the bed and stood by Medic's side. Medic looked over his shoulder at Reaper, who was still on the ground.
"I'm going to have to...sit this one out…" Reaper panted. "Th-that took way too much energy." Reaper took deep breaths as wisps of black smoke continued to seep back into his body. Medic nodded and refocused on Lord Degroot, who was extremely confused at all this. He quickly recovered and pointed at Medic and Mercy.
"Now I dunnae be knowin' who ye strange english-speakin' krauts are or who this 'devil' really is, but no one interrupts me like that!" Lord Degroot exclaimed. "Ye don't know who yer bloody messin' with 'ere!" Lord Degroot's eyes started to glow a ghastly green, a sight Medic was familiar with. A twisted smile formed on Lord Degroot's face. "They don't call me the 'The Ghoul o' Scotland' fer nothin'!" Lord Degroot started to cackle as he extended a hand. Almost immediately, a long two-handed Claymore sword burst through the door, narrowly missing Medic and Mercy, and landed in Lord Degroot's open palm. The sword started to glow green as Lord Degroot tightened his grip on it. He cackled once more. "When I'm through with you two, yer souls are going ta be in a special place in me sword's hilt!" Medic had seen this before. That sword is what will be Demoman's Eyelander, once again reminding Medic that this was Demoman's ancestor. If he dies, Demoman would have never existed, and if Demoman never existed, his family's brewery, which was one of RED Team's most vital sponsors, would also have never existed, making Redmond Mann have much less money to pay the Mercenaries with, thus making them lose their jobs. Medic wasn't going to kill him. No.
He was going to cripple him instead.
And he knew just how as well.
Medic lunged at Lord Degroot, slashing at his face with his bonesaw. Lord Degroot expertly dodged it, spun around, and clashed Eyelander against Medic's bonesaw. Medic ducked under Lord Degroot's arms and leapt backwards. Mercy broke the legs off of a nearby table and threw them at Lord Degroot, distracting him for a moment. Medic took advantage of this and slashed at Lord Degroot's legs, causing him to collapse to the ground. Medic leapt on top of Lord Degroot and swung his bonesaw at him, making him block with Eyelander. Just when it looked like Medic was going to win, Lord Degroot started chanting.
"O cumhachdach deamhain à ifrinn…" Lord Degroot's eyes suddenly pulsated with energy. He instantly pushed Medic off him, sending him tumbling to the ground. "...thoir dhomh an neart a dh'fheumas mi!" Eyelander's eerie green glow strengthened, causing Medic and Mercy to shield their eyes. Lord Degroot looked at them with a wicked smile on his face.
"Angela!" Medic yelled. Mercy turned to him, squinting from the bright light. "Now is zhe time! I'm going to use zhe canteens! Get ready!" Mercy nodded and dashed towards Medic. He pulled a Über canteen from his jacket, took the syringe hanging from the side of it, and quickly injected Mercy with it. Immediately afterwards, Medic hit a switch on the back of the Über canteen, switching it to a Crit canteen power-up. He pressed a button on the side of it and infused Mercy with a Critical boost. Medic handed her his bonesaw and shouted. "GO! RAUS RAUS!" The red Übercharge texture enveloped Mercy as the bonesaw started to crackle with energy. With a loud battle cry, Mercy leapt at Lord Degroot and swung the crit bonesaw at his hip, knocking him to the ground. Strangely, he was not bleeding after he got cut like that. Medic and Mercy noticed the ghostly green energy seeping into his wound, stopping the bleeding. Mercy followed up with a jab to Lord Degroot's legs, violently knocking him backwards. She leapt on top of him and knocked Eyelander out of his hands, removing the spectral energy. The moment the energy left Lord Degroot, the wound on his hip started to bleed again. Mercy grabbed a table leg lying nearby and rose it above Lord Degroot's head, ready to knock him out. Before she could swing her weapon, however, the canteen effects abruptly wore off. Lord Degroot smiled evily and punched Mercy in the face, sending her tumbling backwards. Medic saw this and burst into a rage. He picked up his bonesaw and wildly charged at Lord Degroot, who easily dodged him and shoulder rammed Medic into a wall. As Medic struggled to break free, Lord Degroot picked up a splintery broken table leg and pressed it to Medic's throat, causing small drops of blood to leak out. "Ye 'ave committed a foul crime, ya kraut…" Lord Degroot said menacingly. He took the blunt end of the table leg and smacked Medic across the face with it. "...assaultin' ta lord of Germany, now tis a crime worthy of death!" Lord Degroot raised the splintery table leg and pointed the sharp end at Medic. "Goodbye, ye bloody conjurer…" Medic saw the spiked end of the table leg racing towards him and suddenly slashed at Lord Degroot with his bonesaw. The bonesaw tore across Lord Degroot's eyes, causing him to yell out in pain and stumble backwards, not before stabbing Medic in the shoulder with the table leg. Lord Degroot fumbled around, trying to push through the overwhelming pain in his eyes. He collapsed onto the floor due to his newfound blindness. His screams of pain echoed through the castle, alerting nearby guards. Medic grunted in pain as blood poured out of his shoulder. He grabbed the table leg and gave it an excruciating tug. He managed to pull it out without screaming too much. As his natural regeneration started to slowly seal his wound, he looked over at Mercy and Reaper. Reaper had completely passed out from exhaustion from turning the two of them into smoke and flying them over here. That must be why he didn't do that more often. Mercy was knocked out from Lord Degroot's punch earlier. None of this mattered anymore, as guards were making their way up to their location. They'd all be dead in minutes. Medic looked down at his shoulder wound. His regeneration wasn't working fast enough to heal the wound before the guards arrive. He collapsed onto the floor and crawled to Mercy's side, ignoring Lord Degroot's pain-stricken fit. Medic lay down at Mercy's side and looked at her pale, soft face.
"Vell...zhis is quite zhe situation ve have gotten ourselves into…" He whispered into Mercy's ear. "In a few moments, ve vill all be dead."
"Yes." Medic looked up, his vision blurred from blood loss. "In a few moments, you three will all be dead." Medic could barely make out the figure standing over him. He watched as the person started to pace around the room. "...Do you know why I had been running from you through eight different time eras?" Medic gasped. He knew who this person was now. "I could have easily just have kept hiding in the "Ziegler's Sweets" era. Why did I even bother to time travel?" The sound of Degroot's guards stomping down the hall came within earshot of Medic. The person noticed this as well and knelt down over Medic, looking him dead in the eyes. "That is something you will have to find out on your own." The person took out a revolver and aimed it at Medic's head.
"Cheers love."
Before BLU Spy could pull the trigger, Tracer suddenly appeared beside him and grabbed him firmly by the arm. She grabbed Reaper with her other arm and disappeared in a flash of blue light. Medic was left stunned by what just happened. How did Tracer get here? Suddenly, Tracer returned and grabbed Medic and Mercy. She left again just as Degroot's guards burst into the room.
Historical records of what happened after that day vary greatly. Some say that Lord Degroot was forcefully sent back to Scotland due to his blindness and treated like a freak. He became a heavy drinker, eventually regaining his honor by establishing a famous brewery. Some say that his blindness helped him recognize the horrible things he had done in the past. This made him willingly give up the title of lord and made him go back to Scotland, where he started to experiment with a brand new invention, gunpowder. Demoman himself believes that the truth is a mix of the two, but still thinks that his ancestor was a dishonorable ruler. The Scottish occupation was eventually weathered down by constant riots and revolts from the German people, forcing the rest of the Scots home as well, leaving them with grand stories to tell their children during the long winter nights.
ZAP!
Tracer, BLU Spy, Medic, Mercy, and Reaper suddenly appeared in the middle of a wrecked city block. It was nighttime, the moon, barely illuminating the streets. Tracer blinked into a nearby building and returned with Medic's Medigun and Mercy's Caduceus Staff and Valkyrie suit. Without a word, she healed Medic's shoulder wound and revived Mercy and Reaper with the Medigun. "Now I know that you are all very confused right now, but I'll explain later." She tossed the Medigun at Medic's side and handed Mercy her suit and staff. "I know that we have an enemy standing right by our side, but we need to form a temporary truce." Tracer was met with shocked expressions. "How many of you would believe me if I told you that a threat bigger than Talon or the Deadlock Gang is looming right over our heads right now?" Suddenly, a rocket raced pass Tracer, almost taking her out. Everyone looked down the street and saw Soldier aiming his rocket launcher at them. They all dove for cover as Soldier fired another rocket. Sombra appeared beside him and fired a shower of SMG bullets at the group. BLU Spy looked on in shock. What was happening? None of this was planned by RED Spy or him!
"Comin' through fellas!" Scout shouted as he ran up from behind the group. He tossed a baseball up into the air and hit it with his bat, sending it flying at Sombra's head. The baseball knocked her out cold. Soldier fired a barrage of rockets at Scout, who took a quick sip of Bonk to avoid the damage. A poison mine was tossed out of a nearby building and landed right at Soldier's feet. It exploded into a cloud of choking venom, making Soldier back away in a coughing fit.
"Nice shot Widowmaker!" Tracer yelled. A grappling hook was fired from a window of the building, latching itself next to Tracer. Widowmaker zipped out from the building and landed gracefully.
"Now is the time to move! Go!" Widowmaker urged. The group all ran away from Soldier, diving into a nearby subway station. By the time the cloud of poison cleared, Soldier had lost sight of them. Without emotion, he lightly kicked Sombra's side, snapping her awake. She got back up and looked at Soldier coldly. The two of them started to wordlessly walk down the desolate street in search of their targets.