(Montreal, Quebec).
"Good evening, Mr. Rossi."
The older man heard the woman hang up her end of the line and he let out a deep sigh.
"Ya didn't believe a word of that rubbish, did ya boss?" Came Vincent's voice over the phone.
"Course not, Vinnie. But we gotta play this real discreet." Anthony replied as his mind hurriedly put together a plan.
"Vinnie? I think you know what I'm about to ask of you." He said blue eyes looking to a family photo hanging in the hall.
He could practically see Vinnie smile on the other hand.
"Don't need to ask twice, boss. I'm on it."
The line hung up.
(The Next Day in New Mexico)
Lisa's eyes blinked blearily as the sound of a trumpet broke the peaceful silence of the early morning. Lisa recognized it as 'Le Reveil', despite the ear grating way the performer stumbled over notes.
'La Reveil', a military bugle call to signal dawn.' Lisa thought idly to herself as her eyes slowly sank shut as she started to give in the exhaustion that had creeped into her bones.
'THE DAWN!'
Her eyes shot open and she hurriedly got out of bed and put on her uniform. She was thankful that despite everything she had been through with her clothes that they did not smell thanks to respawn. She would have to ask someone about getting more later. She shoved her vest over her shirt as she ran through the halls to make it to Engie's work area. The bugle was still playing loudly in the background as she hurriedly made her way through building. The suns rays painted the walls orange and gold through the windows. She shuffled down the stairs as quickly as her legs could carry her. She saw sparks flying in the corner and Engie hunched over some project. He looked to be welding something. Lisa's hand went up to her hair and she realized to her horror that she forgot to tie it back. She quickly reached in her pockets to pull out a hair binder before hurriedly threw the curls back into a sloppy ponytail.
The sound of welding stopped and Engie turned to her before lifting his welding face shield up and throwing her a grin, "Mornin', Backup! Sleep well?"
"Well as I could. Thank you for asking. How about you? Did you sleep alright?" Lisa asked in return.
"I don't sleep much, Backup. Got too much work to do, but it was mighty kind of ya to ask." He said with a small smile as he put away some of his tools.
Lisa furrowed her eyebrows at that but before she could comment on his wellbeing, he clapped his hands together and exclaimed,
"Right! Let's get to it. You and I are gonna talk about this here equipment." He said gesturing to an intimidating tall weapon with pronged legs. Two machine guns jutted out and at the top there looked to be a box with four black circles…sensors maybe?
"This here is a sentry. If you couldn't tell…it's essentially a really big gun. It tracks nearby enemies and automatically targets them, makin' all our jobs a heck of a lot easier." He informed Lisa with an almost boyish grin as he patted the gun proudly.
"It only targets enemies?"
"Yeah. Don't worry your head about it shootin' you. It's the blue sentry ya gotta be worried about." He replied with a small shrug.
"The…blue sentry?" Lisa asked confused.
"Yeah…" The Engineer answered sounding confused. "Ya know? We're RED…the other team is BLU."
"Oh, right…" Lisa stated embarrassed but slightly confused. "Not to sound stupid but…the BLU team has the same equipment as us?"
"Yeah darlin'. They look just like us too. Did…Did Pauling not tell you this?" Engie asked slowly.
"Sorry. I know I sound really stupid." Lisa said a blush warming her face.
"No, ya don't sound dumb. I'm just surprised Pauling didn't tell ya." Engie said raising his hands placatingly.
"She explained that there is RED amd BLU and the history behind that. She never said that they have the same equipment or anything…there's a gravel war or something and that's why we are fighting each other. Spy mentioned that there's an enemy Spy. So…do they have the same jobs too? Like a Spy for a Spy?" Lisa grinned at her dumb joke before it quickly fell as Engie took off his helmet and scratched his head.
"Uh…well…almost correct. The BLU team has the same careers as we do…like an Engineer, or a Spy. However…they kinda…ARE us?" Engie said steepling his fingers in front of him as he waited for Lisa to process what he said.
"They ARE us? What does that mean?" Lisa demanded.
"They're…clones of this team." Engie stated plainly.
Lisa blinked a few times as she heard what he said but being unable to fully understand.
"What? So…I'm going to see you guys out there later…just in the color blue?"
"That's the long n' short of it, yeah." Engie nodded.
"So, I'm going to see myself out there too?"
"Ya shouldn't. Somehow the other team has been able to collect DNA from all of us here. We dunno how. Miss Pauling said she'd be gettin' us another teammate and bringin' em in as quiet as she could. I suppose if ya aren't well known in the mercenary world that's a bonus. I doubt they have any info on ya. They somehow always manage to make a clone. I'd say we have a few weeks at the most before they forcibly try to extract DNA." Engie said offhandedly walking across the room to his toolbox.
"Forcibly-What?!" Lisa stammered following him.
"I wouldn't worry. Ya got us and BLU has only infiltrated us outside of the matches a few times. One of those times, our Medic killed the BLU Spy and kept his head alive for weeks before we finally told 'im to end his misery. Haven't had an infiltration since then." Engie said opening the red box and organizing the tools inside.
"Right…" Lisa nodded shaking a little.
"Alright. Before I show ya my machines, I guess I gotta explain the matches a bit better. Seems like Pauling missed those details." Engie said closing his box and walking over to his work bench and pulling up a stool. He then walked over to a coffee machine in the corner and began brewing it.
Lisa hesitantly walked up to the stool and sat on it.
"Ya like coffee? Sorry, I don't have any sweeteners down here. I typically just drink it black." Engie offered.
"I'm alright but thank you." Lisa replied to his kind offer.
He shrugged before looking through his cabinet and selecting a mug,
"Suit yourself."
Engie milled about his workshop as the smell of strongly brewed dark coffee filled the air. The earthy scent reminded Lisa of her grandfather and she felt a soft pang of sadness. He liked his coffee dark too. Every morning he had a cup of black coffee with a biscotti.
"Alright. So, this match is happenin' at 2Fort. It's the smallest field we got, so you should learn pretty quickly. I'll have you stick with me during this match as much as possible so you can get a better understandin' of everythin'. Though, there's not much I can do if Scout or someone more offensive dies and ya gotta fill his shoes. You'll end up a lot farther in the field than where I usually am."
Lisa nodded rubbing her sweaty palms on her pants.
"For Teufort, the main objective is to take the BLU's briefcase of information. Same for them. We have a briefcase that will sit in the Intelligence room on the table. Big briefcase in the color of the team, can't miss it."
"What's in the briefcase?" Lisa asked.
Engie shrugged.
"Dunno. We always keep the briefcase until Miss Pauling can come get it."
"So…do we know what the BLU team does with it?" Lisa questioned.
Engie paused what he was doing for a second and said,
"Ya know? I really don't have an answer for that one. We give ours to Miss Pauling but I'm not sure what BLU does with our briefcase."
"Maybe that's how they keep getting our DNA and your blueprints?" Lisa suggested.
"It's possible but that would require someone to be makin' copies and I keep mine as secure as I can. Who knows what that Spy is doin' when he takes me out on the field…he might be getting info on my weapons while they're down and relaying it to the BLU Engineer." Engie muttered to himself as he poured himself a mug of steaming coffee.
"Well…I don't want anything to happen to you, but if you're down. I'll do my best to protect your creations." Lisa said mustering a grin that was much more confident then she felt.
"Thank you, Backup." Engie replied with a grateful smile.
The rest of the morning was spent with Engie explaining the map of 2Fort and the equipment she'd see on the field. He showed her some basic maintenance she'd be able to do with her welding gun to keep a couple of the machines up if they took a hit. As the morning rolled on, Engie's informative lecture was interrupted by Lisa's stomach grumbling loudly.
"Heaven's sakes, Backup. It's past lunch time. Why didn't ya tell me you were hungry?" Engie admonished ushering her away from the sentry.
"Sorry, Engie. I guess I was just really focused on what you were saying." Lisa replied rubbing her neck in embarrassment at her stomach's loud disapproval earlier.
"When was the last time ya ate?" Engie questioned.
"Ummm…I went back to my room and cleaned it some more after we talked last night and then fell asleep. I woke up late this morning, so I missed breakfast." Lisa said thinking out loud.
Engie's hand on her arm tightened as he practically dragged her to the dining hall.
"Backup, I'm gonna tell ya what my ma told me growin' up. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Ya can't just go skippin' meals. Saints alive! Did you even eat dinner last night?!"
Lisa shook her head mute as Engie dragged her faster.
"No wonder you're thin as a rail. We'll put some meat on those bones don't you worry none."
Lisa shook her head in amusement. He sure could try. Her grandma sure had but she'd always been scrawny. She'd come to accept that she would never be a voluptuous beauty like her grandmother had been at her age. Then a thought occurred to her.
"Engie…I didn't see you eat any breakfast today either."
Engie shook his head as they finally arrived in the empty dining area.
"Don't ya start with me, missy. We are talkin' 'bout you and your determination to die of starvation."
"How about this…I'll eat lunch if you eat too." Lisa suggested firmly as she watched Engie search the fridge for something to cook with.
"Darn. There ain't much in here. There's some eggs. Ya want eggs?" Engie asked ignoring her question.
"I can make my own food, Engie. You don't have to." Lisa snorted in disbelief.
"Forgive me if I don't believe ya. Skippin' almost a full day worth a' meals." Engie grumbled.
"How many eggs are there?" Lisa asked.
"Four." Engie said setting the carton on the counter next to him.
Lisa walked over to the counter and grabbed a loaf of RED bread.
"I can make eggs and toast. How do you like your toast?"
Engie was quiet for a moment before sighing and saying,
"Your gonna make me eat with ya aren't ya?"
"Not taking no for an answer." Lisa affirmed as she plugged in the toaster sitting on the counter.
"Fine. You win. But don't expect this to be an everyday thing. I got too much work to do to be sittin' around." Engie complained while pulling up a chair while Lisa found a pan and began to fry eggs.
Lisa chuckled.
"NOW who's trying to die of starvation?"
Engie shook his head and gave a humored chuckle along with her before patting his slightly rounded stomach.
"I don't think I'll be starvin' anytime soon, Backup."
Lisa shook her head with an amused grin and before too long, a simple meal of eggs and toast lay before them. They both ate contentedly as Engie quizzed her over some of the basic machinery. She stumbled over a couple things but was proud that she had retained most of what he had said even if it was the most basic parts of machine maintenance.
After finishing lunch, the next couple hours flew by. Engie continued to teach and drill her on facts and she did her best to keep up. As she was learning to weld a piece of metal, Scout burst in through the doors. Startled, she nearly burned herself and Engie quickly snatched the welding gun from her.
"Son, what have I told ya 'bout knockin'?" Engie grumbled as he set the welding gun down and turned to look at Scout.
Lisa stood from where she had been kneeling on the ground and brushed off the dirt from her pants.
"It's almost time to head out. But we got a situation…" Scout stated while rubbing his neck uncomfortably.
"What's the problem?" Engie said checking the time on the wall.
"So…we usually take the van and Sniper drives his campa'. It's jammed in the back of da van when all of us go…"
"Just spit it out, son." Engie sighed exasperatedly.
"Ok! Ok! What I'm tryna say is dat all us guys are not comfortable with being crammed with a woman. Alright? It's not…proper." Scout rushed out in a single breath his face flushing.
"Proper? And since when do you care about "proper"?" Engie asked annoyance lacing his voice.
Scout's shoulders tensed defensively.
"'Ey! The other guys aren't happy with the idea either. Doesn't look good for a lady to be in close quarters with so many men."
Engie crossed his arms and calmly asked,
"Who else would be seein' her in the truck? Or are ya sayin' that ya'll can't be trusted around a woman?"
Scout floundered grasping.
"No! NO! We would never hurt her…we just aren't comfortable with her- "
"Being in close quarters with ya." Engie finished.
"Right…yeah." Scout then seemed to notice Lisa behind Engie and flustered said,
"No offense, Backup! We just don't think it's proper."
"Why did no one ask me what I think would be proper?" Lisa questioned her head tilting and eyes narrowing. "I mean…if I'm part of the problem, maybe I should be involved with finding the solution."
Lisa ignored the anger swelling in her chest and pushed those memories down.
Scout did not seem to know what to say to that and his mouth opened and shut like a fish gasping for air.
"Next time there's an issue surrounding me, I would like to be made aware. Please do not make decisions for me. This is supposed to be a team." She answered slowly, even as an old fear raised its ugly head inside her heart. Her palms began to sweat, and she rubbed them on her pants.
"Y-yeah. Sure. We will-uh, we'll do that…next time." Scout nodded looking to Engie for support.
"And…why can't she be part of the process now?" Engie asked walking across the room to begin packing up his tools.
"Because…well, we have already decided what we should do." Scout said before seeing the distressed look on Lisa's face. "But-But next time we will involve you! Ok?"
"Right…" Lisa answered faintly as she struggled to get a grip. She shook her head as memories came unbidden to her mind. She walked over to her backpack sitting on a metal worktable not too far from them and gripped the edges of it for grounding.
'No…not now…you've done so well lately.' Lisa thought desperately to herself. 'Not now…'
"-don't know. You ok with that, Backup?" Engie's voice interrupted her reverie.
She opened her eyes and turned back to look at them.
"Sorry, what? I…I zoned out for a second there."
Engie looked at her and she could not decipher the look on his face. Concern? Scrutiny?
Scout pulled her attention away from Engie.
"You're ridin' wit' Sniper in his camper van."
Lisa's eyes widened and her face went pale with disbelief.
"What?"
"Yeah, ya know. Dat way you're only with one guy instead of eight." Scout nodded as if it was logical.
"How does that make any sense? It's more proper for me to be on a road trip with one man alone in his camper van rather than eight men altogether in a company van?!" Lisa admonished as her face flushed with anger.
"Well…now dat ya put it dat way…" Scout replied sheepishly.
Lisa pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath.
"S-so, I came down 'ere to tell ya that it's time to go." Scout stammered uncomfortably.
"Is Sniper ok with this?" Engie intervened shouldering his large red toolbox.
"Uh-Yeah! Sure! He's fine with this! In fact, it was his idea!" Scout exclaimed nervously. "Yep! One hundred percent his idea."
"Scout." Engie growled growing tired of his nonsense.
"Alright, fine! It wasn't his idea. He didn't wanna drive her. He said she would be fine in the van, but we played rock, paper, scissors and he lost so he gets to drive her." Scout admitted.
"…as in you and Sniper played rock, paper, scissors?" Engie asked for clarification.
"Yeah. What about it?" Scout affirmed.
"So…the other guys weren't really in on this decision…" Engie stated.
Scout paled.
"It mighta just been me…Spy and Demo sayin' dat. Demo was mostly drunk and unaware of the conversation, but I think he'd agree."
Engie opened his mouth to berate the foolish young man but Scout quickly glanced at the clock and exclaimed,
"'ey! Would ya look at da time! Gotta go!"
With that, he ran off.
Engie gave a frustrated sigh and looked at the small woman standing by his worktable. Her eyes were glossy, and her arms crossed defensively across her chest.
"Hey, it'll be alright, Backup. Sniper may not be the most personable, but you'll be alright." Engie comforted softly before an angry look took over his face. "I have half a mind to find that boy and beat some sense into him. Spy too for that matter. That wasn't right of them makin' a decision 'bout ya without your knowledge."
She sighed defeatedly and straightened her shoulders before grabbing her backpack and securing it on her shoulders.
"It's alright, Engie. I'm used to it." She softly said the last part as almost a whisper under her breath.
Engie furrowed his brows at that, the statement not sitting right with him at all.
"What'd ya mean by that?"
Lisa looked up from fastening her backpack startled very clearly not expecting him to have heard her.
"I…I uh…I-"
Over the announcing speakers came the Administrators voice,
"Mission begins in three hours."
"We'd better go. I guess I'll see you there, Engie." Lisa exclaimed rushing out the door.
Engie watched the woman's fleeting form and sighed to himself. He made a mental note to ask at a better time. He shut off the light to his workshop and headed out.
Lisa's heart was racing as gripped the straps of her backpack for comfort. Her throat felt dry and itchy and between those terrible memories coming unbidden to mind and now having to face the team mate she believed hated her most besides Spy…she genuinely wished the earth would be merciful and swallow her whole then and there. It unfortunately did not as she headed outside to where she could see the company van being loaded up. Not too far from it, sat an old, rusty camper van. Leaning against the side of the van smoking a cigarette, his amber aviators reflecting the relentless New Mexico sun, stood Sniper. Everything about him intimidated Lisa. His tall lanky frame looked relaxed, but she knew if she gave the slightest indication that she was a threat…he would spring into action and she would be dead. She swallowed the lump in her throat and trudged towards the man. He glanced up at her as she neared, and she cursed the way his aviators hid his eyes. She stopped a good five feet away from him and gripped her backpack tightly.
"I…I'm ready." She informed him her voice shaking a bit and she cursed herself for stuttering.
He threw the cigarette on the ground and put it out with his boots.
"'bout bloody time." He grumbled lowly as the company van rumble away. "Get in."
She quickly shuffled around the van to the passenger's side where the door was already open. She gripped the handle and pulled herself up and settled into the seat as the engine stuttered to life. The interior was surprisingly clean. Everything neatly tucked away in its place. A mustached bobble head nodded as they drove down the sandy New Mexican roads. He did not say a word. Just quietly drove, focusing on the road ahead of him. Lisa hugged her backpack to her chest and gazed away from him and out the window. The desert all blended into one big beige blob. It never seemed to end. It was march and even though it was still cold up north and white snow still powdered the ground every so often, Lisa would choose that over this never ending heat and beige in a heartbeat. Cacti provided the occasional addition of color in the otherwise barren landscape. Lisa again shyly glanced at the stoic man sitting next to her. One large hand gripped the steering wheel and the other tapped a rhythm on his knee. Otherwise, there was nothing else. Lisa looked away again and turned to look out the window, trying desperately to distract herself from the awkwardness of the car ride…maybe it was just her. He seemed completely unaffected by the stifling tension in the small cab of the vehicle.
Then he moved. Lisa's head whipped back to him to watch him warily as his free hand went to the knob of his radio. Lisa winced as static came through and he searched for channels.
Suddenly the static cleared, and an almost cartoonish voice came through on a channel exclaiming,
"-begin Teufort's monthly yodeling competition! As we all know, yodeling is a treasured tradition here in Teufort! I should know! I am the mayor after all! Contestant number one! You may begin!"
Lisa's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock. What in the world…
"Aw, piss." Sniper grouched trying desperately to change the channel or turn it off.
The noise that emerged from the speakers could only be described as a mix between a cat yowling and tires screeching on pavement. Lisa winced as the sound assaulted her ears and was relieved when Sniper finally got the thing turned off.
"Sorry…not much to listen to around here." Sniper mumbled as an apology, turning his eyes back to the road.
Laughter bubbled out from Lisa as the absurdity of it all hit her. In the past few days, her life had become utterly absurd…the yodeling competition was just the cherry on top.
She wiped the tears from her eyes as she laughed and managed to choke out,
"Oh, I don't know. I think that was plenty."
Sniper's lips twitched in what may have been amusement, but Lisa was unsure. She wiped her eyes as the giggles slowly died down and she sighed and leaned back in the seat,
"Thank you. I needed that."
"Can't really take credit for that. It's an absurd tradition the looney's in Teufort keep up." He replied.
"So, you didn't mean to turn that on?" Lisa questioned still greatly amused.
"Absolutely not. I avoid anything Teufort as much as I can." He stated firmly.
"Then, what were you looking for?" Lisa asked curiously.
Sniper paused for a bit before answering,
"Occasionally I'm able to pick up a jazz station."
"Oh, so you like jazz?" Lisa asked secretly happy to be getting anything from the man that wasn't threats, grunts or grumbles.
"It's better than that ruckus." He scoffed.
"Is Teufort the nearest town to the base?"
He shot her a look before turning back to the road,
"Yes, but never go there. Town full of bloody lunatics."
"I assumed that after hearing their attempt at yodeling…and they do this monthly?"
"Like I said, town full of bogans. Stay away from there if ya know what's good for ya." Sniper said with finality.
Lisa nodded and settled back into her seat, not feeling quite as on edge as she was before. She was nervous about the match ahead. She knew Engie had her back, if she died, she'd be put in respawn. It'd be a few weeks before the team forcibly removed her DNA…they didn't know she was coming.
"Sniper…may I ask you something?" She asked as politely as she could.
He gave a short nod of his head before saying,
"Depends what it is."
"I wanted to know more about the match. Engie said they shouldn't know I'm coming…or that I exist. He explained what their roles are and what I should look out for. But can you explain the layout? That way I know where I'm running? I know there's a briefcase but…"
Sniper adjusted his seated position a bit and nodded,
"Ya wanna know what to look for."
"Yes…please. If you don't mind." Lisa said eyes cast downward as she fiddled with her bag.
Sniper shook his head and said,
"Don't mind tellin' ya. Better ya know now than gettin' there and costin' us the match because ya didn't know where to go."
Lisa felt the weight of the situation settle in her gut but she put on a brave face and nodded giving him her full attention.
"There are two buildings. RED and BLU, obviously. Ours is a wooden building and theirs is more metal…factory lookin' guess you could say. The two buildin's are separated by a bridge with a sewer beneath. The bridge has a tin roof and occasionally BLU Soldier or BLU Scout try to run along the top and drop on people who aren't payin' attention. If I'm alive…that won't happen. I'll gun 'em down before they can even think about tryin'. There's an entry to both buildings if you're brave enough to swim through sewage."
Lisa scrunched her nose at that.
"The Engineer plans on me staying near him unless someone more offensive goes down…which is fairly likely to happen. I don't know Scout very well, but he seems reckless."
Sniper snorted at that.
"You said you're in the tower or typically somewhere high up, right?"
He grunted in affirmation.
"So, you see everything that happens. I'm not wrong in thinking that Scout will be the first to go down." She said looking at him.
"He's fast. No one's faster than a bullet though." He said simply in reply.
"Right…" Lisa glanced at the bobble head still nodding with every jolt in the road. "How about you?"
His glasses caught the suns rays as he turned to her.
"What about me?"
His voice held a slight growl and Lisa backpaddled sensing danger.
"Not that you'd go down first…just that if you did…anything you want me to keep in mind? I'm-I'm not exactly a sniper."
"Not exactly a mercenary either, are ya?" Sniper shot back gripping the wheel tighter.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply you'd go down first…that's not what I meant." Lisa said shrinking back behind her backpack and leaning back from him.
The ride had grown quiet again and Lisa clutched her bag tightly to herself for comfort. Holding onto it as if it were a shield from the stewing man next to her. She glanced at him and he was still as usual. After a bit when his body's tension slowly unwound, she mustered up the courage to speak again.
"I know most of you don't like me much and that's ok. You don't have to like me. I'm not a skilled mercenary like any of you. You are all professionals…I'm a novice at best. I understand if you don't want to help me…but I'd really appreciate any advice you could give me."
The ride was quiet again and Lisa looked out the window again, realizing that this was probably a dead end.
'Nice, Lisa. You were finally getting him to talk and then you just had to go and insult him.' She berated herself silently.
"Ya want advice?" He finally asked his voice still low.
"If you're willing to give it." She answered quietly, assessing the man next to her.
"Try not to die."
Lisa's shoulders slumped with defeat.
"Don't know what your doin' here. Don't think you'll be here long. But while you are…stay out of our way, yeah?" He intoned menacingly.
Lisa nodded and curled away from him as much as she could in the small seat.
The rest of the ride to 2fort was awful. Lisa just clutched her bag tightly to her chest and kept her eyes glued to the scenery outside. As much as she hated it earlier…it was better than being stuck in the van with the man she was next to. He had not said a single word after. The heat in the van was stifling but Lisa was too afraid to ask him to turn on the air conditioning or roll down the windows. They took a turn down an unmarked dirt road and Lisa half wondered if Sniper was going to kill her and leave her body here to rot. Then out of the barren, rocky landscape rose two buildings. One wooden and one metal. The RED bread van was already parked under the wooden building and they were unloading everything. As soon as they parked, Lisa quickly unbuckled and exited the vehicle with a rushed 'thank you' to Sniper. She didn't stay to see his reaction, wanting to be away from him as soon as possible.
She saw Engie unloading the van with Pyro. She headed towards them and Pyro turned to her and fixed her a look with their dark mask.
"Umm…Hey. Do you both need help with that?" She asked nervously, having not met the Pyro personally yet.
"Oh, hey Backup." Engie responded looking away from the box in the van and to her. "How was your ride?"
She threw a glance to the Sniper who was currently walking into the building with his rifle slung over his shoulder and his kukri hanging on his hip.
"It was fine. What can I help with?" Lisa stated shortly glancing at the inside of the van.
"Mrrmphr wrrrrgh mrrr prrrnrr!" Pyro exclaimed.
Lisa startled,
"What?"
"Pyro, I don't think she wants to hold your-" Engie started but was swiftly interrupted by Pyro shoving a very fluffy, bright pink, stuffed unicorn toy into Lisa's arms.
"Oh…um…thank you?" Lisa responded holding the toy and looking at it.
"Hrrrghhg krrn hrrrr trr frrr mrr hrr." Pyro nodded enthusiastically.
"Said you can hold onto it until the match starts and you start to feel better." Engie interpreted nonchalantly as he unloaded a large box from the van.
"Oh, that's really sweet of you. But I feel fine. Really." Lisa said attempting to return the toy.
Pyro fixed her with a determined look before pointing at the toy and going,
"Kerr frrr brn trrrn."
Then pointing back at her.
"Nrn ermphermerms."
"You hold the toy until the match starts. No exceptions." Engie stated as he hoisted the large box onto his shoulder. Pyro nodded in agreement before picking up a large flamethrower and skipping into the wooden building.
Engie then turned to look at her.
"I've never seen Pyro share any of his toys before."
Lisa studied the well-loved pink unicorn. The middle was bent a bit from being hugged so often but was otherwise well taken care of. The pink fur was still soft and fluffy and the horn sparkled brightly.
"I will take good care of it until he needs it again." Lisa spoke dutifully with a playful smile hugging it close and secretly reveling in its softness. If she was right…it smelled like strawberries. She looked at it closer and the back had small blue butterfly wings. She found herself smiling.
"I have no doubt of that." Engie chuckled shutting the doors to the van with Lisa's help.
"Let's head inside and get ready. It should begin within the next half hour."
Lisa and Engie walked in the lower part of the building together. They closed the large metal door behind them, and Lisa saw a similar door facing the BLU's building. It was larger than the one they had closed. Almost like a garage door. The area was filled with lockers and most of the mercenaries were placing items into them or laughing and joking with each other.
"Follow me and I'll show you the briefcase." Engie said kindly patting her shoulder and walking ahead of her.
"Oh, and uh here. You'll need this." He said stopping and handing her a set of small ear pieces. "So, you can communicate with us."
"Thanks." She said placing them in her pocket for the time being.
She followed him clutching the unicorn subconsciously as they passed the other mercs.
"Heh! Nice toy, Backup. Nervous much?" Scout taunted as they passed by. Demo and Soldier snickered along with him.
"It's Pyro's. Gave it to her for safe keeping…unless you'd like to talk to Pyro yourself?" Engie offered turning to the snickering bunch.
Demo and Soldier suddenly seemed much more interested in their lockers and Scout paled.
"No, no! No need!"
Engie nodded and said,
"Come along, Backup."
Lisa walked behind him down a couple of hallways and into a room. There was a large round, wooden table and on it sat a red, metal briefcase.
"Protect that with your life." Engie stated very seriously before leaving the room motioning for Lisa to follow.
Back in the locker area, everyone seemed to be polishing, sharpening or loading their weapons. Sniper sat on a bench not to far away sharpening his kukri. He looked up at her and Lisa quickly hurried after Engie. Engie arranged three red boxes on a bench and looked at her,
"Remember what these are?"
"Dispenser, Sentry and Teleporter." Lisa replied pointing each.
"Exactly right. You're quick as a whip, you'll do fine out there." Engie said with a big grin.
Lisa hesitantly returned his confidence with a small smile.
"Unless one of us dies and she actually has to do something useful. In which case I very much doubt she will be fine." Spy commented as he passed by.
The smile quickly fell at that and her gaze was brought back to the unicorn in her arms.
Engie shot a look at Spy but was ignored. He went to say something but was interrupted by Pyro walking up behind Backup and patting her fluffy curls that poofed out in her ponytail.
Lisa jolted at the unexpected contact before turning and seeing Pyro fluffing her curls, clearly infatuated by them.
"Oh, Pyro. Here's your unicorn back. Thank you for letting me borrow it." She said kindly and holding it out to him.
Pyro's attention was torn away from the curls and with a happy exclamation he snatched the unicorn from her. He hugged it close before giving her fluffy ponytail a few more pats and saying,
"Huddah huddah."
"Yeah, I reckon it's almost time. Is your pistol loaded?" Engie asked her.
Lisa pulled out her gun and quickly loaded it.
"Now it is." She said as she turned the safety off.
"Good. Once the countdown is done, you stick with me, alright? Unless Scout decides to run directly into BLU heavy's gunfire again." Engie ended almost under his breath.
"Hey! Dat was one time!" Scout exclaimed in retaliation after loading his scattergun.
"One time too many more like." Demo snarked before chuckling and taking a swig from a large brown bottle.
"It will be fine. We will see what leetle mouse is made of, da?" Heavy chuckled while picking up Sasha.
She threw him a smile she hoped looked more confident than she felt.
"Mission begins in thirty seconds." Came the woman's voice over the speakers.
"'ey! It's show time!" Scout alerted excitedly running to stand in front of the garage doors facing the BLU's base.
Spy rolled his eyes and adjusted the invisiwatch on his wrist before passing Backup and saying,
"You are even more useless dead. Try to stay alive, would you?"
Lisa tried to ignore him but honestly felt extraordinarily discouraged. She was happy Engie believed in her. She was reminded of this when he patted her shoulder comfortingly and said,
"Pyro will more than likely be with us the whole time. He's the best against Spy's."
"Only because he sprays fire everywhere like a mad man." Muttered Spy as he lit another cigarette.
"Mission begins in ten seconds." The voice stated.
"Ach. Lass, you'll do fine." Demo stated giving her a firm slap on the back causing her to wince.
"If anythin', a man get's too close to ya, kick 'im in the-"
"THREE! TWO! ONE! GO!" The voice boomed over the speaker.
Immediately distracted by the metal door flinging open, Demo cried out loudly,
"LEEEEEEEEET'S DO ITTTTTT!"
With that, most of the mercs ran out. Almost immediately, the air was filled with the sound of gunfire and explosions.
"Come on, Backup!" Engie called already running down the hall and up a staircase. She raced after him, panic seizing her heart as the ground shook from explosions and the walls rattled. She stumbled up the stairs as she ran after Engie. She found Engie setting up the dispenser on a wooden landing so that it guarded the entrance to the beneath them.
"Alright. Sentry goin' up!" Engie shouted as the Sentry whirred to life and began to alternate back and forth, beeping and searching for enemies.
"We got one more to set up. Let's put the other one down on the lower level." Engie told her as he ran down the stairs she had just run up. She caught her breath, glancing to the field below. The BLU Scout was making a run for the RED base from on top of the bridge. There was a resounding echo of a gunshot, and he fell dead into the water below before his body shimmered and disappeared. Lisa looked up and could just barely see the sun shining off the scope of his rifle. Suddenly another resounded and a whistle flew past her ear. With wide eyes, she looked at the wall next to her. A single bullet had splintered the wood wall neatly not two inches from her. She swallowed in shock and quickly ran in the direction Engie had gone, keeping her head low.
She heard the tell-tale beeping of a sentry going up and followed it. She went down the hallway and saw Engie pick up his dispenser and she shot her a grin.
"Whoo! Thought you were a goner for a second."
"Yeah. Me too." She replied pulling out her pistol and holding it at the ready.
"Alright. Let's get this dispenser up and we should be good to go." Engie said lifting the dispenser unit up.
"You already set up the teleporter?" She questioned.
"Yeah, set it up in here not too far from the sentry." He replied jogging past her.
She jogged after keeping an eye out for…anyone really. Her finger was on the trigger and even though she wasn't a good shot, she would do her best. For Engie and herself at the very least.
He quickly set up the dispenser by the entrance.
"Alright. That's that." He turned his gaze to her. "Looks like no one has died yet. That's good! The BLU's Scout and Sniper are already in respawn from what I've heard."
"How do you know?" She asked.
He motioned to his ears where a single small earpiece was.
"Oh, shoot." She muttered embarrassed as she put them in.
"HA! Take that 'Tons of fun'!" Scout's voice taunted through the speaker.
She grimaced and looked at Engie.
"You'll get used to his jawin'. Come on. Let's stay near that sentry in the hallway." Engie advised heading that way.
As she passed through the corridors, she saw a way that headed lower.
"Is that way towards the sewers?"
"Yeah. Spy's like to come outta there. Pyro is runnin' 'round here somewhere so I wouldn't be too worried 'bout that." Engie said from further down the hallway.
She stopped near Engie who was checking the teleporter to make sure they were in working order.
"Everything's goin' fine." He said with a smile before walking past her to check the sentry. "Smoother than I had hop-"
Suddenly, a small black box slid across the floor underneath the Sentry shocking it. The Sentry made a soft sound as it fizzled out.
Engie reached for his gun while shouting into the comms.
"SENTRY DOWN!"
Next thing Lisa knew, a shot had rung out and he lay dead at her feet. Blood began to pool beneath him from where he had been shot in the chest before his body shimmered and disappeared.
She shakily raised her gun and heard the sound of an invisi-watch uncloaking. The BLU Spy stood in the hallway in front of her.
She trembled and heard a whirring noise from her backpack. Not risking going into her backpack to get her torch for the sentry just yet.
"Well…this is a surprise." The Spy chuckled his revolver pointed at her. "Now, who might you be?"
Lisa panicked and shot a few rounds in at him. He dodged, the curve of the hallway protecting him.
She quickly ducked into the room with the briefcase as he returned fire. She quickly reached up to her ear and pressed the button,
"Pyro! I need your help. Engie's down. I'm in the intelligence room."
"Wait! So, you're sayin' Backup needs backup?" Scout joked obnoxiously through the comms before bursting into hysterical laughter.
A few laughs came in through the earpiece from other teammates before footsteps came down through the hall closer to her.
She cursed to herself as she flattened herself against the wall.
"No use in hiding, Mademoiselle." The Spy taunted as he came closer. "That introduction was not very lady like. You would agree, non?"
She put her gun away and quietly reached for the baton hanging on her hip.
"Why don't we try that introduction again?" The Spy said as he stepped through the door.
She swung her baton for his face, but her wrist was grasped quickly by the Spy who twisted it causing her to drop the baton. She quickly found herself on the floor. The wind was knocked from her lungs and she gasped as she looked at the blue suited Spy standing over her. He effortlessly kicked the baton away from her hands and she watched helplessly as it slid across the floor. She quickly shuffled away from the Spy but found herself against a wall.
"Hm. I'm disappointed. I was hoping for a bit more of a fight." He sighed in a bored tone as he walked closer.
She reached for her gun but quickly found a knife at her throat. The tip pointed under her chin. He could easily kill her if he wanted to. His mouth was twisted in a sadistic smirk and his eyes narrowed at her. It reminded her of a cat playing with a mouse…oh God…Heavy was right. She was a little mouse. A little mouse compared to every single one of these men.
"Now, that I've introduced myself. Tell me who you are." He said a threatening lilt to his voice.
Tears sprang to her eyes as she felt the knife press harder against her throat.
"You have two choices. You can tell me who you are, and I can make your death swift and…mostly painless, or you can bravely or should I say…foolishly, refuse and I will make your life until death a living hell." He hissed, his cold eyes stormy and demanding.
"P-please…" She managed to gasp out before the knife was pressed again into her.
He laughed cruelly.
"Oh, you beg so nicely. I only wish the laborer were here to watch you plead for your life like-"
Suddenly, there was a loud,
"HUDDAH! HUDDAHHHH!"
The Spy in front of her erupted into flame. She quickly rolled away from him and the onslaught of heat. She quickly put out the edges of her shirt that had caught fire. The Spy's dying screams were horrifying to hear. He wailed as his flesh and bones melted together. Soon the screams stopped altogether and what was left of him, shimmered and disappeared.
Lisa gasped for breath while clutching the wall and looked up through her tears to see Pyro standing there with a cocked head.
"Hrrmph wwrrrmph?"
"I-I'm ok. If that's what you're asking…" She stammered as she shakily got to her feet.
"Hrd Drrf." He mumbled in response walking with her to the hallway.
She glanced at the Sentry sapped and wilted in the hallway.
"I'm Engie now…right." She said to herself before pulling out her welding gun and headed to the sentry.
"Pyro, cover me." She said as she knelt to the broken sentry. She flipped the switch to the wires a few times and they whirred softly. Oh good, the damage isn't so bad we have to wait for Engie. She soldered a few of the wires in the way Engie had showed her. She fused the plastic around the wires and the sentry whirred louder. A good sign. Ok…maybe she would do something right.
She then saw that Pyro was eagerly watching her use the propane torch to fuse some of the plastic together.
"Engie said you're good at making and fixing things. Am I doing this right?"
He didn't say anything. Just continued to watch the small spark of flames from her gun intently.
"Ok…" She said quietly to herself, slightly weirded out by his intense staring. She stopped soldering wires to put the torch away. She opened her bag and found a small wrench. Her eyebrows raised in surprise. She had been told she'd only get the torch…nice. Now she can hit it the way Engie told her to and maybe with some luck it'll-
Suddenly, she found herself surrounded by flame. She quickly leapt out of the way as Pyro began torching the Sentry. She put out the flames on her body and looked in shock at Pyro who was cheering as the Sentry began to melt.
"PYRO?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" She shrieked.
"PRRrrrrrdddaaaAHHHH!" Pyro sing-songed in reply as the Sentry melted into a puddle.
"'ey! Has anyone heard from Pyro or Backup?" Scout's voice came in through comms.
"Not a word. Think they're dead?" Demo asked in reply.
"Maybe, but the briefcase alarm hasn't gone off yet." Scout noted.
Lisa stared in bewilderment at the pile of bubbling red goop that was once a sentry on the floor in front of her. Pyro did a happy dance before patting her head and skipping off.
"Oh my God." She whispered to herself staring at the mess. "Engie is going to kill me."
"'ey! Backup! You there?" Scout came over comms.
She clumsily answered the comm.
"Y-yeah…I'm-I'm here."
"Demo! Ya owe me ten bucks!" Scout shouted, causing Lisa to wince from the volume.
Demo grumbled unintelligibly over the line.
A sound emerged from further in the building. She quickly pulled out her gun, cursing herself when she realized she'd dropped her baton in the intelligence room.
'Backup forgot her backup weapon…great.' She grumbled to herself.
Around the bend ran…Red Engineer.
"Oh, thank God." She breathed lowering her weapon.
"Sorry 'bout that. Trust ya had no trouble with the Sentry or anything? Pyro help you out?" He chuckled good naturedly as he walked down the hallway past her.
"About that…Engie, I am SO sorry. I-" She followed after him, almost running into him as he came to a full stop in front of her and was staring in shock at the melted pile on the floor.
"How in the stainless-steel bolts and fasteners did ya manage that?!" He exclaimed walking closer and examining it.
"Um…I guess you could say that…umm…well, Pyro helped me. Or rather he attempted to help." She chuckled rubbing her arm self-consciously.
She heard her backpack whirr and she knew the torch and wrench were gone.
Engie stood up and pushed his hard hat back to scratch his scalp as he continued to look at the melted goop that was once a beautiful gun.
"He saw me using the welding torch and…I guess he got excited and he just…went for it?" She explained nervously.
He turned to her with a look of complete dismay before giving a dry laugh and saying,
"Well…I know you're tellin' the truth. You're little weldin' torch couldn't do none of that. I can say for sure that that ain't NEVER happened before. I'll have a talk with Pyro later."
He gave another chuckle as he shook his head and looked at the goop.
"I dunno whether ya have the worst luck…or the best luck I've ever seen. All things considerin' I thought you'd be in respawn 'cause of that dog gone Spy."
"Yeah…I would've been but Pyro saved me. Had Spy immediately went to kill me, I would've been dead." Lisa nodded walking into the intelligence room and picking up her baton.
"Whadd'ya mean he didn't kill ya right away?" He asked as he checked on the teleporter.
"He cornered me and tried to get me to tell him who I was and…" She stopped as she reloaded her weapon.
"And? What?" He asked sounding angry.
"H-he said he was going to torture me until I told him who I was." She shook her head as she finished loading her weapon. "I just assumed that was the usual around here."
She turned and was surprised at the dark look that had passed over Engie's face.
"Didn't hurt ya none, did he?" He asked looking at her.
"Umm besides the emotional and psychological scarring? I'm alright." Lisa joked light heartedly but stopped when she saw the dark look hadn't left his face.
"Imma kill 'im. Next time I see his smug, BLU, French face I'll-"
"Hey, Engie. It's ok. I'm fine. Promise." Lisa told him as he marched down the hallway to check on his dispenser.
Engie checked on his machine and turned to look at her.
"Ya sure you're ok?"
"I mean yeah. As good as you can be after being threatened." She said throwing on a bright smile.
He didn't look convinced.
"Seriously…its fine…I mean, it's not fine but it's fine. I have already been killed by a couple of my own teammates. It's not really shocking that the other team would want to do worse."
An explosion rocked the ground.
"We'll talk about this later." He said turning to her.
A whirring sound went off in her backpack. She opened it and pulled out a grenade. Here eyes went wide.
"Demo." Engie nodded solemnly. "Well…go get 'em Backup. Ya got this."
She did not in fact 'got it'.
She crept cautiously outside and saw absolute mayhem. Soldier launched a rocket at the enemy Demo and the enemy Demo dodged as the ground he had just been standing in blew up, launching rock and dirt everywhere.
"'ey! You finally joined the party!" Came an excited voice next to her.
She screamed and swung her baton at the source.
The person yelped and leapt back with a,
"Jeez! Calm down, goldilocks!"
She gave a soft breath of relief and as she was about to put her baton away, her eyes narrowed and she raised it again,
"How do I know you aren't the BLU Spy?"
"Already had a run in with him, didja? Yeah, he sucks." The Scout replied nonchalantly before whistling at Soldier's impressive rocket launch.
"Tell me something only our Scout would know, or I'll kill you right here and right now." Lisa growled through gritted teeth as she held the baton to his throat.
"What? Kill me? Wit' dat? Come on, Goldi." He replied unbothered rolling his eyes.
She wasn't having any of it. She pushed the baton against his throat and jammed him against the wall of the RED building.
"Last chance. Something only our Scout would know." She hissed.
Scout's blue eyes were wide now as she pressed the baton against his throat.
"Wait, you're not serious. Backup, come on. I-"
"You have until I count to three and then I crush your windpipe. One." She stated steeling herself for the horrible deed she was about to commit.
"Something only I would know? What do you want from me?! I don't-"
"Two." She said gritting her teeth and willing her hands not to tremble as she slowly applied pressure.
"Uh the um…the uh-the-the bet! Yeah! We all bet against you in the fight against Soldier! I lost twenty dollars betting against you!" He stammered out.
Lisa's eyes went wide, and she quickly removed the baton from his throat. He coughed and rubbed his throat and gave a few dry coughs.
"Oh my God. I am so sorry, Scout!" She apologized as she rubbed his back. "I'm so sorry! I just had a run in with the BLU Spy and now I'm paranoid. I'm sorry!"
He coughed out a laugh and shot her a grin,
"Eh. Betta' safe than sorry."
"Thanks for understanding." Lisa said as she surveyed her surroundings.
"Yeah…not gonna lie. Dat was kinda hot though…" Scout said breathlessly as he adjusted his cap on his head.
"What?" Lisa asked not sure if she heard him correctly as she turned to him.
"Nothin'." He shook his head before his eyes widened. "LOOK OUT!"
He grabbed her and they both flew backwards as the impact of the BLU Soldier's rockets exploded the ground beside them. Scout was the first to recover, standing up and shooting his scattergun at the Soldier who quickly took cover before yelling,
"MAGGOTS!"
"Got anythin' in that pack of yours dat could help us?" Scout said gritting his teeth as he continued to fire.
She nodded and quickly rifled through to pull out a grenade.
"Ok…how does this work?" She murmured to herself turning it around in her hands.
"WHADD'YA MEAN HOW DOES IT WORK?!" Scout screeched at her as Soldier ran closer.
She pulled the ring and looked up to see Soldier running at them full tilt and Scout backtracking behind her as he missed with his scattergun.
She threw it at the approaching Soldier. It made it about ten feet…not anywhere near Soldier. It did nothing. A disconcerting smile slowly spread across the BLU Soldier's face as he advanced.
"DIDN'T YOU PULL THE RING?!" Scout shouted as he desperately tried to reload.
"Yes, I pulled the ring, Scout. It's not working." She grouched at him before pulling out her pistol and missing again.
"YOU SHOOT LIKE A GIRL!" The Soldier taunted as he began to charge.
"THROW ANOTHA ONE! That last one was clearly a-" Scout panicked.
Suddenly, an explosion filled the air and Lisa's ears rang loudly. Through the pain and the dust she saw the remains of what used to be the BLU Soldier.
"…dud." Scout finished in shock.
She glanced up at him and got another grenade in her hands. Ready to throw at the next person who approached them.
"Ok…that was sheer dumb luck." Scout murmured cocking his scattergun.
"Yeah…no kidding…" She said glancing around for an enemy. "Hey, has anyone seen-"
She did not get to finish that sentence as a few blinking bombs rolled towards them both and exploded.
(Three hours later).
"You've failed." Came the woman's voice over the speaker.
Lisa sank down on a bench and let her head rest against the wall. Sweat rolled down her neck and she breathed heavily. The last person she had to fill in for was Soldier…it hadn't gone well.
The team was not in the best of spirits given their loss and Lisa tried to make herself as unnoticeable as possible. That didn't work.
"WE LOST TEAM! I DON'T ACCEPT FAILURE! WE WILL TRAIN AT ZERO HUNDRED HOURS STARTING TOMORROW! NO EXCEPTIONS!" Soldier bellowed marching back and forth in the corridor like a caged animal.
He then marched up to her and her shoulders tensed instinctively.
"ESPECIALLY YOU, ROOKIE! A ONE-LEGGED CHICKEN COULD HAVE PERFORMED BETTER THAN YOU DID OUT THERE TODAY! DROP AND GIVE ME FIFTY!"
"How 'bout we wait until tomorrow to duke out punishment? That alright with you, Solly?" Engie inquired of Soldier quietly with a easy going lilt.
Soldier considered it and nodded firmly.
"Your teammate has vouched for you, Rookie. Don't think it will always save you."
With that he marched in the direction of the company van.
"Engie? Am I riding with Sniper again?" She asked quietly, wincing at how every muscle in her body ached in protest.
"I'm assumin' so. Bette' hurry out there. I think he's getting' ready to leave." Engie nodded.
"Thanks!" Lisa exclaimed running out.
"'ey! Backup!" Scout shouted getting her attention.
He caught up to her and blurted out,
"Ya didn't totally suck out there today."
Her face scrunched in confusion.
"Uh…Thanks? I guess?"
He shrugged.
"Yeah no problem. Did betta' than my first day. Boy…that was somethin'. You got one kill in at least…I mean, we did explode immediately after but-"
"Scout! We are leaving!" Shouted Medic as he headed to the van.
"Be there in a sec!" Scout shouted back before turning to Lisa again. "What I'm tryna say is…ya could use some help. Let's start those baseball lessons tomorrow, huh? I'll teach ya 'bout bein' a Scout too. You'll be kickin' butt on the field in no time."
Lisa threw him a tired grin.
"I'd like that."
Scout beamed and his chest puffed out.
"Yeah. Course you would! I mean, who wouldn't want to learn how to be a mercenary from me? I'm the Scout! I'm so fast, ya can't even-"
"SCOUT!" shouted Heavy.
"Comin'!" He shouted back. He threw Lisa a two-finger salute and ran back to the van.
She shook her head amusedly at his antics before heading to the camper van that was already running.
"Thanks for not leaving me to walk the whole way back." Lisa said to Sniper as she got into the van and buckled herself in.
"Don't push your luck." Came Sniper's snarky reply before they began their drive.
Lisa was too tired to respond or take what he said personally. She laid her head back against the seat and watched as the sun turned the sky crimson. Her eyes felt heavy and before she knew it, sleep had wrapped her in its sweet embrace.
Author's note: Whoo! Longest chapter yet! Please let me know what you think! I thrive off of comments! I am currently in school so updates may be sporadic. I am much more motivated to write when I think people are interested though. Thank you to everyone for reading this far! Hope you are all excited for what is to come!