*Russia: Volskaya Industries*
Quillion had gone through his fair share of travels in his heyday and peered through these giant glass window panes at various airports, watching and waiting for their turn to board the for his flight across the world. The funny thing is, the window is the same, the waiting is the same, but instead of a plane or a destination on Earth, it was a space shuttle to the Moon.
Back in his day, he would've panicked that they were launching on the day of the ceremony itself, as it would've taken at least three days to reach the Moon. However, combining decades of space travel research (including theoretically top secret files that Sombra provided) and Volskaya's advanced technology, a trip to the Moon now would only take an incredible few hours, at most.
It was a perfect day for launch, with a clear sky and a beautiful view of the distant mountains, it would be a crime if he does not put the view down onto paper, especially when sitting across the room from him were the ex-Talon agents, who were once again bunched up but quiet, each of them seem lost in their own thoughts.
Quillion could not shake the feeling that Reaper is quietly studying him, but his mask makes it impossible to tell, Moira is pacing in a systematic pattern, clearly almost as nervous as he was while Sigma is humming a song to himself. Sombra sat a little further away from them and from her constant tapping on a holographic keyboard hanging in front of her, he guessed she was still practicing.
It was so surreal that he didn't know what to do besides just sitting down on the ground and pulling out his sketchbook to pen down this moment.
A few lines in he realized a problem. His pencil tip had become quite dull and the problem for a dull pencil in a futuristic country was that there is no sharpener. Pulling out his knife, he was about to sharpen it when a realization gave him pause.
This was the first time that he properly looked at it, having never really studied it before, even when he kept sketching in this 'modern' era. There was nothing special about it, just a locally made, cheap, graphite based pencil with a blue body, ending with a black tip where the letters '2B' were etched into it.
This was also the very last of its brand and the only other survivor when the Chateau was destroyed, as he took it with him to the movies that day by accident. His old music player, sketchbook, his weapons, everything was burned away that night, saved for Amelie, himself, and this pencil.
It is a rare thing for him to feel worried, even though he had been outclassed by the modern standards of combat, he still maintained a degree of confidence in his skills, evident when he dared to attack Talon base. But now they will be fighting an entity whose capabilities and location are both literally outside of this world.
He told himself that this is just like an underwater covert mission that he himself was familiar with compared to the upcoming battle. He understood the importance of maintaining enough oxygen to complete the objective, the stress of avoiding as much damage as possible to the regulator or the goggles. There were many times they risked their reserves to cripple the enemy, but they were only able to do this because there was always some sort of backup plan, a chance to regroup should things go wrong.
Basically, there will be air as long as they plan accordingly.
But like that fateful day when the base was destroyed… There will be no escape routes, no retreating or regrouping. There is no place for them to resupply, nowhere on the Moon where they could take time to strategize due to the lack of oxygen and places where they could fallback to.
His training was clear. In all combat situations, both groups will always stack as much advantage upon themselves as possible against their opponent, to make them bleed, grind, pay, and earn for every inch of ground towards victory. And from how Sombra described The Conspiracy, It held all the advantages.
With an almost omnipresent presence on Earth, one could only imagine how powerful It is in Its main base. With nothing more than It's words, It brought the world into two major conflicts (and probably a third should they fail), so one can only imagine how powerful It'll be with It's actions. Needing nothing more than just the Sun for Its main source of power, one could only imagine It's almost limitless potential.
Adding to the fact that should they die on the Moon, there is little to no chance that their bodies would be sent back for a proper burial. Even if It sends them back, his bones would be nothing but dust by then…
In short, there may be a very good chance that this pencil will be the only reminder of him for Amelie if she pulls through.
"Not if, when she pulls through..." he scolded himself when the door to his left flung open and Reinhardt walked in.
"Stop thinking so much, it's unhealthy!" Reinhardt laughed after he saw their faces "Everyone here is in for an adventure of a lifetime!"
When no one said anything he continued.
"Come come now! You all may have been beaten by me in the Training Room, but that is just training! We shall prove ourselves in glorious combat!"
Everyone wanted to ignore him but was surprised when Reaper chuckled.
"You've been saying that too much Reinhardt" he said, turning his head to face him "You're not even coming with us"
Reinhardt's features grew serious and looked like he was figuring out how to reply when the door opened behind him.
"Quillion, Zarya wishes to speak with you" the person spoke, his face paling after reading the room.
Groaning, he ignored the curious eyes from everyone and walked away quickly.
"What happened back there?" the man asked.
"What do you mean?"
"The Reaper looked like he was about to fight the German and you had your knife out! I will not have Volskaya's reputation ruined with a failed launch just because of childish squabbling!"
Quillion laughed, to the man's annoyance. He couldn't help himself. They are about to embark on a journey towards certain death, and this man is only worried about flight records.
They walked a little distance away and stopped outside a door that he never went in before. Walking through it, he rolled his eyes to see two guards facing them, guarding another door behind them. After a brief pat down, they finally arrive where they're supposed to.
Apparently this was a shortcut to the Loading Bay for the shuttle and judging by the coat of paint, this was a recent renovation. Passing through crowds of busy people, each either carrying sometimes or counting, they finally met Zarya at the far end of the bay.
"Report" Zarya ordered, looking down from her Mech.
"Like I said before, all she wants to do is quit after this mission" he replied.
"Don't be naïve, she has too many enemies to quit. Perhaps Katya was wrong to use you, you've always been useless after all"
He knew this was a bait to get him angry, so he ignored the comment and stared at her nose just to pretend that he was maintaining eye contact.
"Fine, here's a chance for you to be useful" she added, throwing down a small, rectangular box that is the size of a remote control.
"And this is?"
"A little taste of her own medicine. After you guys are done up there, open the box and press the button, it'll deliver an EMP wave to shut her down, once that happens, you can either shoot her, or just wait for her to suffocate"
"Suffocate?"
"Her suit's helmet is also rigged to explode upon pressing the button"
"No, I won't do it, she does not deserve to die like that" he said, shaking his head and dropping it.
"You think you know her? Or that she has good intentions? She could, would and had crippled nations boy, don't think her hands are all clean just because you worked with her once"
"No" he said firmly.
"Do what she says, unless you want to risk dying here for not killing Sombra?" a voice came from the door.
Quillion didn't even need to turn around to know who it was, that cursed voice is enough. He felt his head begin to hurt as his conscious fought against its programming. Clenching his teeth, he bent down to collect the remote.
"You know, maybe Sombra may not be the only villain here after all" he said, looking at Katya.
"Villains, heroes, just words, all we are doing here is to do what's best for Russia and her people"
"Ahh yes, of course the most powerful woman in Russia cares very much for her people" he replied sarcastically, causing others to stare at him angrily.
"Just go up there, finish your mission, dispose of Sombra, and then we'll let you come home, simple" she said, ignoring his words.
"Why can't you make it all automatic? Control the remote from here, or heck maybe even our suits and cut off the oxygen or something, why must I do it?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he remembered why they are taking such measures. Everything he's seen so far, with anti-invisible detection methods and manually controlled elevators to different rooms were all in an effort to make everything as unhackable as possible, this was just one of those measures. And he was forced to comply.
"Just be ready, looks like we are ready for launch" Katya said, looking at her watch.
*London: King's Row*
For the past couple of weeks, everyone had hoped that the tense environment between humans and Omnics would dilute away as more had poured in from different countries. Unfortunately for everyone, such luxuries were never earned by hope.
The overtime has been an absolute nightmare for Emergency Services as endless streams of reports of random violence and theft intensified between the groups, and to add to the chaos, many of the calls were merely attempts to have individuals arrested without provocation, to which Hana labeled as "for the lols".
With such a volatile situation, Overwatch has been called to assist, a request that Morrison accepted reluctantly when he was reminded of the Uprising.
"They should be right below you" Ana said, already adjusting her sights to the next area of distress.
"Copy that" Winston said and dropped down behind two Omnics that were seemingly threatening a woman.
"Hello there" he said.
"Oh thank god!" the woman cried when she saw him.
"You don't get to say that!" the Omnic yelled at her before looking at Winston "We were just about to take this thief to the police!"
"No! They're mugging me! Help!"
"All of you are coming with me" Winston said with what he thought was his most threatening voice, but it came out as a squeak rather than an order.
"You do not believe us? You discriminate against Omnics?!" one of the Omnics yelled.
"I can't go! I need to get back home! My father is sick!"
Stumped, Winston took a minute to think, but it merely escalated the situation.
"You call yourself a hero? Help me!" the woman cried.
"I knew Overwatch only served the interest of humans! That is why none of your members are Omnics, ain't it?!"
He didn't know what to do. Both sides provided valid arguments but only one of them could be right and he cannot make any drastic decisions, especially when the ceremony begins in a few hours. When he felt he could not be redder than how he imagined his face must be, a welcoming sound of thrusters dropped from above.
"What seems to be the problem here?" Fareeha asked.
Whether it was her entrance, the iconic Helix Security Armor, or her authoritative tone, or all of the above, the Omnics immediately backed away from the woman.
"She stole from us!"
"They're trying to kidnap me!"
"Do not worry, I know exactly who is at fault" Fareeha said, walking between them "But before I reveal who it is, I am giving an opportunity to confess your crimes now"
When there is silence she continued.
"I am from Helix Security International and my colleague here is from Overwatch, you do not want to test us. Confess now and we will not arrest you"
At the last word, the woman quickly pulled out an item from her coat and threw it on the floor and took off running.
"What are you doing?" one of the Omnics shouted, but to their surprise, the woman ran straight into the police, who grabbed her awkwardly.
"Wait! She said I wouldn't be arrested!"
"By us" Fareeha said as she activate her Hover Jets and beckoned Winston to follow "Take a good hold of her officer, the Omnics will fill in the details"
Taking off into the air before they could get a reply, they went a little distance away before settling on one of the roofs.
"That was interesting" she said, taking off her helmet.
"Please tell me that you knew which one of them was the culprit" Winston said, his anxiety still at full throttle.
"You know that I don't"
Winston frowned. He had always believed that Overwatch should maintain a high level of integrity and honesty in their work, but since Faheera belongs to HSI and has no official obligation to Overwatch, he could only delay his opinions to a later date.
"How's everything?" he asked, changing the topic and looking over the crowded street with her.
"As expected. Tensions are high for both parties and they're always finding something to blame" she sighed.
Just as she finished speaking, shouting could be heard and they saw that a fight threatened to break out between an Omnic and a man when his daughter accidentally walked into it. Thankfully the situation was quickly dissolved when the same police who caught the woman seconds earlier quickly handed her over to his partner before rushing to the scene.
"That man deserves a medal" Fareeha commented.
"If both of you are done resting, there's another distress call near your location" Ana said, looking at them through her scope.
"Let us know where and we'll be there" Fareeha replied before putting on her helmet and flying up into the air.
After issuing her orders, Ana put down her rifle for the first time since last night, rubbing her eye and massaging her shoulder that had become sore.
"Guess I really am getting old" she thought when a cheery voice spoke.
"Err… Captain Bastet, Tracer reporting for duty"
"Tracer?" Ana said with surprise and looked down, just in time to catch a blue blur on the roofs of the buildings below.
"Sorry I've been away Cap, I'm willing to make up for it"
"You're Missing Person's Duty, there's reports of a few people missing, find them"
"Leave 'em to me!" Lena said, reading the information before Blinking away.
Tapping on her communicator, Ana filtered out Lena's coms before speaking.
"Everyone, Tracer's back on the field- Yes yes, she'll be patrolling away from the Meridian" Ana said amidst the audible gasps and replies "Winston, come back and find yourself a spot, the rest hold position, how are things down there Mercy?"
No response.
"Mercy?"
Picking up her rifle, she scanned the area where Angela was assigned and felt a cold shiver when she's nowhere to be seen.
Bored out of her mind, Brigitte paced around the room. If Reinhardt had not also ordered her to protect Zenyatta after she attempted to ask him to give her another assignment, she would've already left the building. She is a squire of the Crusaders! She should be out there to protect the innocent away from their enemies, something that Reinhardt is doing now as he watches over the Reaper and the others, not to hide away with an Omnic who just floats around all day.
What's worse is that Genji seemed content where he is. She was sure that someone as active or as battle hardened as he was would share her frustrations and also request for a more active role in this mission like the others out there. Instead, he chose to waste his hours away meditating in the corner with his 'master', which (like her father) privately disturbed her, which also breeds doubts for her mission.
Under the guidance of the world's best engineer, she had been trained and had been familiarized with not only the constructions of mechanics, but the concepts of machines, something her father always expressed as a stupid thing to actually needed to be thought through with the birth of Omnics.
Despite the pretense of humanity that the Omnics displayed, she fully understands that they are nothing but electricity, wires, metal and bolts, and are all driven by highly advanced AI, which is why she never had a problem destroying them. However, it is not them acting this way that is the real danger, rather it was Humanity's stupidity that scared her father the most, which in turn, scared her.
True to his predictions, the majority of the world had forgotten what Omnics are and that's what brought the world into an endless warzone.
First their role was obvious. To assist humanity in menial jobs so that they could focus on more important tasks, with enough AI to adapt to slight changes in various situations. Then the Omnic Aurora had to come along to 'free' them of their bonds and their desire for rights has set the world aflame.
Sure there were some Omnics that never picked up weapons nor used violent means, however that was purely due to their own programming that forbade them from 'crossing' the line, their limited hardware literally unable to accept the Wartime/Strategic languages that were solely reserved for the more advanced/specially assigned models.
Now she is in the same room with an one that could very well pave the way for another war by giving these machines a false sense that they are of equal footing with humanity.
Is this what she is protecting? A potential time bomb that would spark the next war?
She wished she had Reinhardt's simple look of life, to just care about the adventures and action, rather than the potential outcome of their mission.
A knock from the door caught her attention and before she could stop him, Zenyatta already opened it, revealing another Omnic carrying three glasses of what looked like milk.
"Thank you" he said, accepting the tray before hovering over to her "You look restless, here's a glass of milk to ease your troubles"
"What makes you think I need milk at one in the afternoon?" she asked while trying not to sound rude.
"I was told that this is the healthiest beverage for humans to calm down with, it is unfortunate that they do not have cookies"
"Right…" she said and was about to drink it when Genji spoke suddenly.
"Brigitte, I believe that a milk will be wasted if not had with cookies, let's go find some"
"Do not trouble yourself, I shall make another call" Zenyatta said.
While he was drifting over to an old phone on the wall, Genji approached Brigitte quickly.
"Though I trust my master, we must take precautions" he said quietly, grabbing the milk and pouring the contents into a pot of plant nearby.
"Huh… And here I thought you're just…"
"Just what?"
"You know… Blinded by loyalty?"
"He saved my life and helped me find a path while I was lost" Genji replied after a pause "But I am not blind to potential threats, even from our closest friends"
"My apologies, but the staff is not allowed to go out to find cookies, nor are we accepting deliveries" Zenyatta said when he noticed the empty glasses in Genji's hands "But I suppose that is not needed anymore"
"Sorry Master, I was thirstier than I thought"
"Very well, you have had trouble meditating today, so I will allow it. Come, let us continue"
"You have trouble meditating?" Brigitte whispered.
"Yes… For some reason, I feel the Dragon is under a lot of stress… But I do not know why…"
*Russia: Volskaya Industries*
Time passed like a blur and if anyone were having second thoughts, it was kept private. Their briefing was purposefully short and quick, no doubt that the Russians shared no love for the mission nor for the safety of wanted criminals, and were only obedient due to Katya and Sombra's combined efforts of authority and occasional blackmails.
To the world, the Russians were merely sending Engineers to inspect the Moonbase (something that had sent China into a fury of confusion as all the official documents had been mysteriously approved for this expedition) and therefore, no one cared, evident when they walked into a totally empty Press Conference, saved for a snoring Security Guard at the door.
"Ya know, it'll be nice to be noticed sometimes" Sombra said, flicking open a screen and studied what people were watching "Even if tonight's the Pax Aeternum Ceremony, someone could've tuned in"
"You want people to see us?" Moira replied.
After only a minute, they were escorted out and proceeded to the landing site, where they quietly took the elevator towards the upper section of the shuttle. The trip was quick but telling, each of them admired the beautiful day and the landscape silently, and even the ever stoic Reaper joined to take in their surroundings, all of them telling themselves the same lines.
"We'll be back"
When the elevator reached their destination, Quillion was about to exit with the others when Reaper spoke.
"I'd like to have a word with you" he said, staring at him.
"Err…" was all Quillion could say.
"Make it quick then" Sombra said and walked off with the others.
"Ok… What do you want to talk about?" he asked, trying hard not to tremble under Reaper's gaze.
"Why are you going to the moon?"
"Huh?"
"You heard me, why are you going? Before you didn't want to go, why now? Fame? Money? Revenge?"
Quillion's mind raced. No one here knows why he came back, that Amelie is currently fighting for her life in Overwatch because of the God Program, so logically his return would've raised suspicions. He should've known that even if everyone else were either too exhausted or too busy to notice, Reaper with his cautious nature and wealth of experience, would.
Reaper saw that he was trying to forge a story and clasped a claw over Quillion's neck.
"Lie to me now, you'll find yourself falling down instead of going up" he threatened.
"I'm doing this- to stop- God Program" Quillion gasped, trying to free himself.
"I won't ask again" Reaper said, tightening his grip.
"Peace- Amelie- Peace" was all he could manage.
Just when Quillion was about to sleep, Reaper relaxed his grip, threw him to the ground and walked away. With the bulky suit, it took him a few seconds to get back to his feet and he had to run to catch up to the Black Mercenary.
"What was that for?" he asked angrily, rubbing his neck and checking for blood.
"We will be the only soldiers up there, I needed to know if I could at least trust your resolve"
"That's it? Just two words and you're satisfied?"
Reaper ignored him and walked away. If only he knew how close he was to killing him, Quillion would be wise to back down sooner. If they were not so undermanned now for good soldiers, he might very well have killed him just for the fun of it. Thankfully Quillion was smart enough to know not to continue pestering him and merely followed after a few more attempts.
Of course those words are enough... Even though this man from the past may not know it, a soldier who protects those behind him will always be superior to those seeking fame or glory.
They did not talk until they reached the entrance of the shuttle and could hear the others talking from within.
"Just remember, if things go South up there and Sombra dies, I'm taking over"
"And why would we allow that? Who put you in charge?"
"Do you really want Moira or Sigma to be squad leader? Or are you confident enough to take over?" he asked before going in.
"Dammit" Quillion muttered.
"You boys got it out of your systems?" Sombra said, checking her straps.
"We just had a talk" Reaper growled.
"Yeah… Remind me to never have a chat with you" she replied, noticing the marks around Quillion's neck.
Though they had been briefed how different their cockpit would be, it was still a disappointing sight. Despite their insane hours of training and studying, there was no way that they would be expected to know how to properly operate a space shuttle within a couple of weeks, so everything has been simplified to the point that truly 'even a monkey can do it'.
Instead of the hundreds or thousands of buttons or switches in front of them, it was limited down to no more than a single joystick, buttons with the labels Manual Start, Return to Earth, Damage Control, and Defenses, and some meters that track their Fuel and Oxygen Reserves.
Though the cockpit was spacious, it reminded him of a tank. With no paint and surrounded by layers of steel platings, it was a grim contrast between exploration and invasion.
"Alright, everyone strap in, we are launching in 5 minutes" a voice called from the radio.
Strapping in and Quillion caught his reflection by chance at one of the windows, and could've sworn that he was looking at a ghost. His training and enhancements may have immunized him to never give into fear, but it's ravaging effects were clear as day.
His face was paler than it has ever been, his hands trembled violently as they fumbled with the straps, he could hear his heart banging against his ears, and he felt cold. Real cold. Almost as cold as the time he nearly died.
However, he steadied himself with a hope, one that is potent enough to steady his hand, calm his heart, and is always a source of warmth for him.
He was back in the manor, on bed, looking at Amelie, and she would looked back, the sunlight making her even more beautiful. There was no pain, no fear, no threats of attack. A very small, fragile, and momentary peace that they could very rarely enjoy, due to the many enemies that are always hunting them.
If he could end her troubles, to give her a life that could stretch that small fraction of peace into a lifetime, to give her a world where there are no more fears of attacks, to be able to let her rebuild the manor or take walks in the parks without the constant need to look over her shoulder. If her vigilance will end by destroying this God Program, he is ready to lay down his life to give that to her.
"T-Minus 15 seconds to launch… 5… 4… Engine Start… 3…"
"Honor and Glory!" Reinhardt shouted suddenly from behind, shocking everyone as he strapped himself in quickly.
"Reinhardt?!"
"What the hell are you doing here?!"
"2… 1… Boost ignition... Liftoff"
*King's Row: ?*
Cold water splashed across her face, waking her with a start. Instinctively, she tried to raise her hands in a sign of peace, hoping that her kidnappers would be willing to use words instead of violence, but to her dismay, not only were her hands tied, but her mouth was taped over. She thought hard to piece together what happened. There was a sudden fight that broke out near her and the paramedics were having trouble pushing through the crowd. Someone was bleeding so she tended to the person… Then darkness.
"So this is the hero Mercy?" an Omnic said, looking down at her and throwing her wig aside.
"Yes, Mother will be pleased, shall we proceed?"
Angela struggled against her bonds, desperately showing that she is willing to talk, but to her horror, a needle loomed into view.
"Mistress, allow me" she felt the Dragon growled, filling her with murderous desire.
"NO! We must not hurt anyone!" she ordered, gulping it down and continued to struggle.
"You are in danger!"
"I SAID NO!"
She had hated and regretted herself for participating in the violence in Venice all those months ago, as it broke the oaths and pledges she had recited with her colleagues, betrayed her admittedly evolving beliefs of pacifism and even struck McCree down purely because of insults that did not concern her. All she wants is to know who they are and why they are doing this, perhaps she could help.
If only she could speak.
"Mother, by Your will, may this vessel submit" a chorus of voices chanted around her.
Unable to stop them, she could only whimper when the needle pierced her skin. First there was nothing. Then suddenly, she could feel them, as if thousands of ants had invaded her blood vessels and were invading every part of her.
Her screams of terror were short lived as the nanobots injected themselves firmly into her, taking over her. The Omnics merely watched her struggle, waiting until she slowly slumped over in the chair.
"Who do you serve?" one of them asked.
First she didn't answer.
Then...
"I serve the Iris" Angela replied numbly.
"Very good..." it replied, placing a map before her "Now tell us where your friends are and how best to deal with them"