Guardians Come in All Shapes and Forms

Chap 2

'This is what I needed.' Mercy thought as she relaxed in her first-class seat. It had been so long since she felt this pampered and relaxed she nearly forgot what comfort was. But after dying so many times, being brought back to life, dealing with mountains of paperwork, and the Overwatch members, this felt like she died and gone to heaven. However, she did have to remind herself to relax whenever someone came towards her or thoughts of the Overwatch members came to mind. Although, she knew that once she returned to base, paperwork or not, she would have a lot of work that needed completing.

'Just relax, Angela. You need this vacation. Jack, Reyes, and Ana have everything covered.' Mercy thought as she leaned back into her chair.

"Miss, what would you like to drink?" The stewardess asked, getting her attention.

"Some hot chocolate, please." Mercy answered with a smile. While she would never outright admit it, hot chocolate, especially hot chocolate made with Swiss chocolate, was something of a guilty pleasure and weakness to her.

"I'll have that for you in a moment." The stewardess said, smiling before leaving.

Smiling, Mercy leaned back into her seat and stared out the window. Despite the news saying that it would be nothing but clear skies, it was cloudy with signs of heavy rain on the way. Wanting to stay on the safe side, she took out the tablet Symmetra gave her for her birthday. Turning it on, she clicked on the news app to check the forecast. Yet to her surprise, it said that it would be nothing but clear skies for the rest of the week. Concerned, she closed the weather app and then input her information to access Overwatch's radar. Mystifyingly, she got the same results.

"This is certainly strange. Better inform Winston, Mei, Soldier, and Reyes about this." Mercy said as she quickly sent a message to each of them.

"Excuse me, miss. Here's your chocolate. But I'm also going to have to ask you to put away the tablet as we are about to take off." The stewardess said, getting her attention.

"Right. Sorry, and thank you." Mercy said as she quickly shut off her tablet and took her drink. Blowing on it, she took a small sip and relished in the warmth entering her body. Sighing, she placed her glass in the cupholder before fastening her seatbelt. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out some filtered earplugs and put them in her ears.

'Attention passengers. Please raise your seats to the forward upright position and lift your tray tables. We will be taking off momentarily.'

"The others are right. I do need this. Hopefully, they won't need me while I'm gone." Mercy said as she put on an eye mask and closed her eyes.

'Good morning, passengers. This is your captain speaking. This is a nonstop flight to Queensland, Australia. So, sit back, relax, and we'll be off shortly.'

"This will be a vacation worth remembering." Mercy said before falling asleep.

Eight Hours Later

"What?" Mercy asked after being jolted from her sleep. Removing her eye mask, Mercy looked around the first-class cabin and noticed that it was a mess. Drinks, food, carts, and other miscellaneous items were strewn about the place. Seeing a stewardess running nearby, she waved to get her attention. "Excuse me. But, what is happening?"

"We are experiencing massive turbulence." She explained while holding onto a nearby seat to stay on her feet. "And as a result, most of our equipment is being tossed around the cabin with passengers getting injured."

"Do you require my assistance?" Mercy asked, getting up from her seat. Thanks to multiple missions with less than stellar flying conditions, she did not need any help to remain upright.

"Yes. Your help would be-" The stewardess began before stopping when the lights briefly went out before coming back.

"That can't be good. How are the pilots and other crew members?" Mercy asked as she reached into the overhead storage and pulled out her bag. While it did not contain her staff, it did have enough medical equipment for the time being until they level out.

"I'm not sure. There has been no contact with the pilot or copilot since the turbulence started." The stewardess answered before regaining her balance after a particularly nasty bump. "The other members are tending to the passengers or securing any equipment."

"Okay. I have enough supplies to help until this turbulence passes. Let's head... That's strange." Mercy began before stopping when she looked out the window. During her time as a medical professional and Overwatch member, she has been on thousands if not hundreds of thousands of flights. And she had her fair share of rocky rides due to turbulence. However, none of the usual weather signs that cause turbulence are present. While there are other types of turbulence, she doubts they were the cause. The only other one that seemed plausible was mechanical turbulence. Yet, that was also unlikely as thanks to advancements, that was a thing of the past. Now, that only happens due to sabotage or negligence.

"Miss. Is everything okay?" The stewardess asked, snapping Mercy back to focus.

"Yes. Sorry." She answered, shaking her head. "Let's head to the other cabins and tend to the injured."

Nodding her head, Mercy followed the stewardess to the business class cabin. Yet, once there, she became incredibly distraught at what she was seeing. Multiple injuries that required intensive medical care as soon as possible. The aircrew even covered multiple bodies with blankets. While not a well-known fact, with good reason, the blankets were to hide the fact that a person died from other passengers. Not wasting another second, she went over to the nearest passenger and started tending to their injuries. But she knew many more would die unless they got help immediately.

"Sir. I need your help." Mercy said, grabbing the arm of a passing crew member.

"With what, mam?" He asked, panting.

"Down in the luggage compartment is my bag. And in it is my Caduceus Staff. Bring it here quick otherwise, many more will die." She ordered.

"Right away." He said before dashing towards the back.

"Okay. Stay with me." Mercy said, turning back to her patient.

Casting her patient a glance over, she was relieved to see that there were no severe injuries she couldn't handle. Unfortunately, that did not mean she could move on to the next passenger. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a few basic medical supplies, including gauze, rubbing alcohol, and adhesive tape. Applying and treating the wounds, she did a quick patchwork before moving on to the next passenger. However, she froze at what she saw. It was a young girl, no more than eight, holding onto, supposedly, her mother's hand. But, said mother, was covered by a blanket. Yet, before she could say anything, the crew member returned with her staff... and weapon.

"Here you go, mam." He said before rushing to help the others.

Smiling, she activated her staff and quickly healed the men and the daughter. With them now cared for, she began healing all the other passengers. Admittingly though, she did have trouble keeping upright with how much turbulence the plane was experiencing. And as she made her way down the aisle, she mentally wished she was wearing her Valkyrie Suit to not only speed up the process but also make it less challenging. Yet, it seemed no matter how quickly she was healing everyone; they kept getting hurt by flying luggage or slamming into the ceiling or walls.

"Verdammt." Mercy cursed when a particularly nasty bump hit the plane, followed by the lights going for about ten seconds. Yet, she did not let it deter her and continued healing everyone as fast as possible. Unfortunately, they would have to wait as a more pressing issue arose.

"IS ANYONE A PILOT!?" A crew member shouted, getting her attention.

"What's happening?" She asked, running towards them, which proved difficult with the ongoing turbulence and luggage that were strewn about the aisles.

"Oh, good. Dr. Ziegler. We need your help. The pilots. They are unconscious." The stewardess from before answered while running up to her.

"What of the autopilot?" Mercy asked, trying to keep her fear from showing.

"It's working for now. But with the power and lights constantly flickering, I'm not sure how long it will last." She answered, struggling to stay on her feet as the plane rocked again with the lights flickering afterward.

"Verdammt." Mercy cursed before composing herself. "Take me to the cabin."

Nodding, they ran up to the plane's cockpit. Although, that became increasingly difficult with each step as the turbulence worsened. Reaching the first-class cabin, Mercy made a beeline towards her seat before grabbing her bag and ensuring she still had her tablet. Sighing, she turned around and was about to resume following the stewardess but had to hold onto the nearby chair to avoid being flung into the air from another nasty turbulence bump. Stabilizing herself, she ran towards the front of the plane, where the stewardess was struggling to open the door. However, she had to compose herself when she noticed two bodies on either side of the door. Even though blankets covered both bodies, she could tell they died from cerebral trauma.

After a few more tense seconds, the stewardess finally opened the door. Entering, she looked around and noticed both pilots were still in their seats. Running over to them, she checked the pulses and had to stifle a gasp. One pilot was dead while the other was unconscious and was unlikely to regain consciousness even with her Caduceus Staff. Cursing, she turned to the controls to check the plane's systems. Even though she wasn't a pilot, she had a few courses on operating and landing aircraft. Unfortunately, it would seem like she would need to put those lessons to use after the lights went out. The instruments also went out for a very brief second, but thankfully, the autopilot remained functioning. Yet, she knew it wouldn't last with how things were going. Unbuckling the pilot, she pushed him off before seating herself and placing the headset on her head.

"Miss. Tell the other crew members to buckle in and secure whatever they can. It looks like we might need to make an emergency landing." Mercy said, turning to the stewardess.

"Right away." She said, face pale white before turning and exiting the cockpit.

Turning back to the controls, Mercy activated the comms to send out a distress call. Yet, she internally panicked when she couldn't get them to work and only heard static. Thankfully, she brought her bag with her along with her tablet. Taking it out and turning it on, she quickly sent a message to Gibraltar base to inform them of her current situation and send help immediately. However, as soon as she hit the send button, the lights and instruments went out again. Unfortunately, some of the plane's instruments, along with the autopilot, did not come back on. Cursing, she buckled herself in before turning into the fasten seatbelts sign. But, her misfortunes were not over yet as she heard the distinctive sounds of engines blowing seconds later. Leaning forward, she looked out the windows and felt dread creep down her spine when she saw that three of the four engines were now on fire.

"Everyone, we need to make an emergency landing, NOW! GET INTO CRA-HUH?" Mercy began, warning the passengers but became confused when she heard muffled screaming followed by something crashing into the windows. Turning to the front, she only managed to catch a glimpse of something red before it disappeared. Shaking her head, she focused on the task of landing the plane before it fell from the sky. Activating the landing gear, which was thankfully still operational, she began to have the aircraft descend back to the ground carefully. For a brief moment, she thought she would be able to land the plane without much trouble while keeping it mostly intact. Only for that to be disproven when the landing gear malfunctioned and retracted back into the plane and would not come back out. Cursing her luck, she knew that there was only one option left to keep damages and casualties to a minimum. And that was to get the plane over water. Yet, almost as if her luck couldn't get any worse, it did in the form of the plane's right wing tearing off, causing the aircraft to tilt to the right and begin an uncontrollable descent.

"COME ON!" Mercy shouted as she struggled to keep the plane's nose upright as the ground rapidly approached but failed. Bracing herself, she said a quick prayer before everything went black.

Five Minutes Ago

"MMMMMMMRRRRRRRPPPGHHH!" Pyro shouted as he flailed around as he fell from the sky.

Had it not been focused on trying to come up with a solution to prevent itself from becoming a pancake when it reached the ground, it would have wondered where and when it was. One moment it was taking the teleporter back to Engie's house, and the next, it was in the sky falling to its guaranteed death. Usually, death never bothered or scared the pyromaniac as it has been killed before. However, that's only because it knew it would be revived with the respawn machines provided by Mann. Co. and Medic's respawn devices. Unfortunately, Mann. Co.'s respawn machines went static a long time ago. And while Medic's respawn machines still work, it still needed Medic's medi gun to have it work and bring it back to life. But after flailing around for a few more seconds, it remembered that it still had its thermal thrusters.

"Hurrururururu!" Pyro shouted as it had the thermal thruster's handles appear on either side of it.

Activating the thermal thruster, its descent slowed and soon came to a halt. Letting out a muffled sigh of relief, it looked around and tried to make out where it currently was while mentally thanking Engi for upgrading the thermal thruster. About a year after being let go, Engi and Pyro decided to upgrade some of their gear and weapons out of boredom but also for a sense of nostalgia and curiosity. And the thermal thruster was one of the first gear they decided to upgrade. Now, instead of only holding two charges, it contained six charges with the added ability to hover in the air. Although, despite the upgrades, it still had a limited fuel supply which meant that it had to start its descent to the ground or risk becoming a bloody pulp.

"Mmmrpgh crpyha drghya!" Pyro grunted as he used the charges to begin descending back to the ground slowly.

Yet, it knew it would be a while until it reached the floor due to being high up in the air. At the very least, though, the weather was nice despite the heavy clouds. Typically, it preferred sunny days filled with rainbows, so it would be easier to spread cheer and joy to those that need it. But it did find the calm, cloudy days with no rain to be strangely soothing. Whether it was because of the locations it had to travel to while employed as a merc or for another reason, it did not care. After a few moments, it could begin to make out some things on the ground. And from what it saw, it could tell that it was in a densely packed rain forest. While this eliminated some places where Pyro could be, it raised more concern than not. Mainly because of the possibility of being above the jungles of Australia. That's because Australia is home to some of the most dangerous and lethal animals that ever existed. And if Pyro lands in or near one of Saxton Hale's exhibits or preserves, it would get ripped to shreds in moments.

"Eeuaghafvada." Muffled Pyro as he waited for the thermal thrusters to regain their charges.

It had just occurred to it that it had another problem on its hands. And that was on how it would get back home. It could try and get a message out to Sniper if the location he is in is Australia. However, it then remembered that Sniper was out on an assassination mission in South America. This meant that it had to find a way to contact Engi without causing too much of a commotion. That or finding a means of transportation would be more of a pain than dealing with those dead ringer spies. Unfortunately, it was snapped out of its thought when it heard the distinct sounds of a plane rapidly approaching. Having the thermal thrusters turn it around, Pyro screamed in muffled terror when it noticed a plane heading towards him. It thought that the pilot would try and guide the plane away from it for a brief moment. Unfortunately, it quickly realized that the pilot wouldn't be able to since the engines were destroyed and the power seemed to be flicking on and off. And since the thermal thrusters were still recharging, this meant that Pyro could do only one thing.

And that was to scream in muffled terror.

"Mmmmmmmrrrrrrrpppghhh!" Pyro screamed in muffled pain as he hit the tip of the plane and was sent flying through the air uncontrollably. Most would automatically assume that anyone would instantly die if they hit an aircraft in midair. However, Pyro has gone through worse, like with the yeti Hale captured and came out relatively okay.

It still hurt like hell, though.

"Mrfer!" Pyro shouted as it struggled to get the thermal thrusters to work again as the ground rapidly approached. Thankfully, it managed to let out one last charge, which slowed its descent enough that it would not be killed or knocked out upon impact with the floor. Although, the charge did send Pyro in the direction of a tree. And, despite the fall through the tree being unpleasant and painful, it was far better than landing on the ground face first.

"Mrh! Hrt hr nha phrnt yrh mrprph!" Pyro muffled as it jumped out of the tree and landed on the floor with a sharp grunt.

The collision with the pain did leave a couple of nasty bruises behind. Dusting itself off, it then looked around to try and make out where it currently was. Yet, it became confused as it knew it was an Australian rain forest, but something was off. It did not feel like the Australian forests where danger resided with each step. Hearing a rustling behind it, Pyro turned around while pulling out its backburner. Although, it did let out another pained grunt as it did so. However, to its surprise, a tree-kangaroo jumped out of the bushes. This alarmed Pyro as this told him he was not in the Australia it knew as tree-kangaroos were on average about five feet tall thanks to being exposed to australium. And this one was only about thirty inches. But before it could dwell on it too much, the ground shaking followed by a small explosion caught its attention. Turning back around, Pyro realized that the plane had crashed nearby. Even though Engi wasn't here, Pyro knew that he would have gone to see if he could help any possible survivors. With that in mind, Pyro holstered its backburner before running to the crash site. Albeit with a slight limp as its right leg was heavily battered and bruised.