From the Shadows
"Caller please identify."
"Access code blue rider. Get me a secured line to Captain Jameson."
"...One moment please."
"That access code hasn't been used in years. Who is this?"
"Someone who has information to share. I assume you know about Tracer?"
"We might do. What do you know?"
"I know where Talon are keeping her. I'll send you the co-ordinates, as well as information about the base and when the best time to attack will be, at exactly midnight, on one condition."
"Which is?"
"You don't inform Overwatch about any of this. You come without them. If you don't do this, the deal's off."
"...Deal."
United Nations Headquarters- New York- United States
"Why aren't we hearing from Morrison himself? We only recently found out he was alive, surely there's many questions he should answer?"
Mercy was currently sat infront of her most important audience to date, the United Nations. Throughout her career she'd stood up and talked in front of a crowd, explaining her research and her medical breakthroughs. Compared to this, that was very easy. Here, one wrong answer could tarnish the image of Overwatch and even her own name.
When Morrison approached her about this, Angela was very unsure that she was the best person for the job. Frankly, her time here was only reinforcing this opinion. She was being asked difficult questions, some she just couldn't answer, either because it was sensitive information or she simply didn't know the answer.
She'd been here for quite some time now, at least an hour and a half, though Angela considered it could have easily been longer. After many questions related to Talon, as well as the other issues affecting the world, the questions now seemed to be focusing on Overwatch itself.
Angela's current question was another one of those difficult questions. It was true that Morrison could have just as easily come here instead and this was a question that she couldn't leave unanswered. So she was a little nervous as well as stressed to say the least.
She took a breath, remembering a talk she'd had with Fareeha and Ana, who were both currently sitting back in the dropship.
Fareeha had been helping Angela prepare, making sure she was as calm as possible, while also giving her as much moral support as possible. Ana on the other hand had told Angela what she considered the UN would do. She'd said that the UN would be tough on her. They'd ask difficult questions and would try to find a reason to keep the Petras Act in place. So, she needed to be smart and show that Overwatch were serious about protecting the world, in whatever way possible.
With that in mind, Angela changed her attitude. She needed to be more confident with her answers but she also realised that she needed to play politics, so to speak. The public were already putting pressure on the politicians, so she needed to add to it.
So she began to do just that, thinking of an answer to the question she'd been asked.
"I'm not too sure what's left for him to say. I think the recall he sent out made his point rather clear if I'm honest."
Some of the diplomats didn't seem to impressed by the answer, yet some actually smiled.
"Perhaps he could start by explaining why we should trust Overwatch after all this time. Let's not forget that Overwatch had a hand in forming Talon into what it is today. Or perhaps he could explain what he was doing after his apparent death, after the Swiss headquarters was destroyed."
"It's up to him whether or not he decides to do that." Mercy replied, prompting a different diplomat to speak up.
"Let's return to the main matter at hand. As has been previouly said, Overwatch had a role in shaping the world into what it is today. There were a number of events leading up the collapse of Overwatch. While we cannot state the content of these missions, we are able to talk about one that you had a role in. You were part of the team that dealt with the King's Row uprising, is that correct?"
Angela remembered this mission all too well. Lena's first mission as an official agent of Overwatch. Angela remembered her being nervous but hiding it well. Overwatch went into King's Row without the backing of the UK government. While they were able to end the uprising, it didn't help with the political side of Overwatch.
"Yes. I was part of that team."
"Would I be correct by saying Overwatch did not have the permission of the UK government to intervene in this situation?"
Angela knew where this was going. They were trying to discredit Overwatch, put pressure on her and see how she'd respond.
"Yes. That is correct. However, the situation in King's Row had deteriorated very quickly. Had we not acted, many more lives could have been lost."
"To clarify, the UK's position on this matter has since changed. We support the motion to revoke the Petras Act." The ambassador for the UK quickly added, earning some nods of agreement across the room.
"That may well be the case, yet Overwatch still acted against orders. So how could we be sure that they'd not do the same this time?"
Angela thought about her response carefully, before she responded. "Overwatch puts lives first. If we're held back by people telling us what we can and can't do, it'll only lead to more lives being lost. Just because something is easier does not mean it is the right thing to do. We need to be trusted to do the right thing, to keep people safe."
That was ironically a conversation she'd had with Lena shortly after her first mission. Lena was talking while Angela was checking over her injuries, which were thankfully quite minor. She knew that Overwatch had acted without authority and was worried about the possible ramifications, yet she believed that they'd done the right thing and Angela couldn't help but agree with her.
"Doctor Ziegler, while your contributions to the medical field can't be denied, what can be contested are your contributions to Overwatch. There are some people which believe those working for Overwatch should be arrested..."
"You're not going to arrest us."
"And why is that Doctor Ziegler?"
"Because despite what you might say, you all know that you need us. I know that some of you are wary of revoking the Petras Act and believe that, due to its past actions, Overwatch should remain shut down. For a long time, I was one of those people. Overwatch had lost its way but right now, it's a completely different organisation."
Angela took a quick breath, before continuing.
"Yes, Overwatch has made mistakes and those mistakes helped shape the world into what it is today. However, we're also the ones who are best suited to protect it from those threats. Every person who currently helps us knows this and no matter what you say, we won't stop until the world is safe. The world is changing and it needs someone there to watch over it. You all need to decide the future of the Petras Act soon because the world cannot stand any more inaction. So if you want to arrest us, go right ahead. In the mean time, we have a job to do."
With that, Angela stood up and walked towards the door, leaving the room and heading back to the dropship. The two Overwatch soldiers who had followed her in had stayed at the door and began following her as she made her way outside.
Angela had never spoken to a crowd the way she did today, especially one so powerful. Perhaps it wasn't quite the correct tone but frankly, the world needed Overwatch. She knew that. The people outside knew that. Hell, even the people in the room knew it, even if they wouldn't admit it. She just hoped that they'd make the right decision.
Meanwhile, the remaining Overwatch soldiers sat in the dropship, waiting for Angela to finish her meeting with the UN. Ana was one of the occupants, sat looking over her rifle while also keeping an eye on the crowd outside. Fareeha was also inside, wearing her full combat armour in case trouble started. Right now, she was pacing back and forth, worrying about how the meeting was going.
"Faree, can you please stop that?" Ana eventually said. "You're making everyone nervous."
Fareeha stopped pacing for a moment and looked to the other troopers. When some nodded in agreement, she took a breath before sitting herself down next to her mother.
"Sorry. I'm just..."
"She'll be fine. You're here to support her afterwards and there's no sign of Talon. So don't worry."
Before Fareeha could say anything else, she heard the crowd begin cheering. Another Overwatch Soldier, one closest to the open dropship door, informed the occupants of what he saw.
"Mercy's back. Guess the meeting's over."
Fareeha quickly stood and walked to the door, giving Angela a smile once she was close enough to see it.
"Long day?" She joked
"You could say that. Tough crowd in there."
As the Overwatch team boarded, the pilot started up the engines and the dropship door closed. Once the ship had powered up, it gently took off, slowly moving away from the buildings before speeding off, back towards Gibraltar.
"How did it go then?" Fareeha asked, giving Angela a hug that she guessed she needed.
"I... I don't really know if I'm honest. They asked a lot of questions, some I couldn't answer..."
"That's okay though. As long as you made a good impression."
Angela looked up from the hug, staying silent while looking away slightly.
"What did you do?" Fareeha asked.
"I might have walked out."
"You walked out?" Fareeha repeated, surprised by this.
"It was something Morrison said. He told me if they mentioned arresting agents then I should just walk out there and then."
"It was kinda cool to be honest." One of the soldiers said, causing Fareeha to raise an eyebrow.
"Did you know anything about this mum?"
"I... might have know that Jack suggested it. The idea was that we showed them we're serious. Didn't think Angela would actually do it though."
"I didn't like it." Angela admitted. "It wasn't how I'd normally handle something like that... Yet if I'm honest, I don't think they were fully listening anyway... Was it the right thing to do?"
"Walking out? Possibly." Fareeha replied. "Mum has a point, it might show them that we're serious and not messing around. I doubt anything we'd say would fully convince them but it might help with the political pressure... That alone might be enough."
Angela nodded. "Yeah. Maybe you're right."
Angela fell silent again, going deep into thought. Fareeha could tell something was bothering her and had a good idea what it was. So she gently tapped her arm to gain her attention.
"You're worried about Lena, aren't you?"
Angela nodded ever so slightly. "Yeah... I know she has Amelie with her but Talon's got Emily... I'm worried she's being put through the same things we were... Lena's strong willed but... she won't even put up a fight if they touch Emily."
"I know. We're all worried about her, but the best thing we can do is keep going. That's what she'd want us to do. No matter what she's forced to do, her loyalty is with Overwatch."
"I hope you're right... I don't think we can manage losing her."
"We won't lose her or Amelie." Ana said, determination in her voice. "Whatever it takes, we will find them."
Talon facility- Unknown location
"Tell me what you know."
Lena was chained up, her arms above her head, fixed to the wall behind her. In front of her was Emily, chained up in a similar way. One of her eyes was heavily bruised and blood was pouring down her face. In the middle of them was Reaper, who was trying to get information from Lena, regarding the recent movements of Overwatch. Problem was, she didn't know anything.
"I don't know anything, I swear!" Lena shouted back, not wanting Reaper to lay another finger on Emily.
"Wrong answer."
Reaper punched Emily, causing her to spit out blood. Reaper followed up by retrieving one of his shotguns from his coat and pointing it at Emily.
"What are Overwatch planning?"
"I don't know."
Reaper moved his aim, firing a single round into Emily's leg. She screamed out in pain, which only got louder when Reaper stepped on the wound.
"I won't ask again. What were Overwatch planning before we took you?"
Lena looked to Emily, seeing her in complete agony.
"I'm telling you, I don't know! Just stop, please!"
"How about I give you to the count of three. Then, if you still can't remember, she dies."
The shotgun was pressed against Emily's head and she couldn't help but start crying, both in fear and because of the immense pain she was in.
"One."
"Please, I'm begging you! I don't know anything!"
"You're begging the wrong person. Two."
"I'll tell you everything I know! Access codes for Gibraltar, codes to pilot the ships, anything! Just stop, please!"
Reaper stood still, staring at her like he was considering the offer and for a moment, Lena had a glimmer of hope. Yet this hope was soon shattered.
"Two and a half."
"I love you Lena."
Lena looked at her girlfriend, seeing Emily trying her best to hold back her tears. She knew what she was saying. This was goodbye.
"I love you too Emily."
Emily closed her eyes and Lena looked back up at Reaper. "Please. Please don't do this."
"Three."
Reaper pulled the trigger and all Lena could do was shout Emily's name.
Talon base- Unknown location
Emily wasn't sure what time it was or how long she'd been asleep when she was woken up. She was still next to Lena, yet she wasn't sleeping well at all. She was talking in her sleep and was clearly having some sort of nightmare. Emily sat up and debated whether she should gently wake Lena up. However, she never had to make that decision.
Lena's eyes suddenly opened. She shouted Emily's name and began breathing heavily. She was shaking, obviously scared by the dream she'd just been woken by. Once she saw Emily, Lena seemed to calm down, sitting up and wrapping her arms around Emily like her life depended on it.
"Bad dream?" She asked softly, rubbing a hand over Lena's back.
Lena continued to cuddle Emily, gently nodding her head when she felt a little calmer.
"What to talk about it?"
Lena remained silent for a few moments before she answered.
"It was about you. Talon were torturing you, trying to break me, force me to give up information about Overwatch... I didn't even know anything about it... No matter how much I begged them to stop, they just kept going and going until..."
Lena began crying, cuddling Emily as tight as she could. Emily ran one of her hands through Lena's hair, doing her best to calm her girlfriend down.
"Shh. It's okay Lena. I'm here. I'm okay."
"I'm sorry Em. You never should've been here."
"I don't blame you. None of this is your fault."
"It's not just that though. I'm scared Em. I'm scared that something will happen to you and I'm scared I'm going to become something I don't want to..."
"That won't happen Lena." Emily said, as she looked Lena straight in her eyes. "You'll think of one of your classic Lena plans and find us a way out of here. Then, you're going to take me out to the fanciest restaurant you can find."
Lena actually managed to chuckle when Emily said this. "Yeah, food's not the best here... How are you managing to keep it together so well?"
"Honestly, I'm scared too... but I'm know you need me, so I'm staying as strong as I can. Thing is, I need you too. So please Lena, don't give in and think there's no way out. That isn't the girl I know. I need you to be strong, okay? I know you'll find us a way out."
Emily wiped away Lena's tears with her thumb and Lena gave her a gentle smile. "Okay Em... I'll... I'll do my best. I love you."
"I love you too."
The two embraced again, just as the door to the room opened and Widow stepped inside.
"Bad time?" She asked, seeing that Lena had been crying.
"No, I'm okay." Lena said, wiping away her tears. "Where did you go?"
"I went for a walk, tried to work out which base we're at."
"Any luck?"
"Not much. All I found out is that we're in an underground facility. Other than that I have no idea."
Lena sighed. "It was worth a try though."
Widow gave Lena a nod before sitting down in the armchair. She didn't tell her about her talk with Reaper. It wasn't that she didn't trust Lena, quite the opposite actually. She just wasn't sure if Talon were currently watching them or how Lena would react to the idea of Reaper helping them. Instead, she decided to keep quiet for now. She just hoped Reaper's plan, whatever it was, worked.
Watchpoint Gibraltar- Later that day
It was much later in the day when the team sent to the UN returned to Gibraltar and news regarding Angela's speech had travelled fast. When she arrived back at the base, Angela was greeted with a large amount of support, both from people at the base and around the world.
Despite the fact Angela walked out of the meeting, something that she was unsure of afterwards, it seemed to have garnered a lot of support. This was evident from the news channel, that was on the screen when Angela reported to Winston's office, giving Morrison and Winston a report of how she felt the meeting went.
"I know I said this already, but nice work doc." Morrison said, after Angela finished her report.
"Why me Jack? I couldn't answer everything they wanted to know and they clearly wanted to speak to you more. So why did you send me instead?"
"Well, I've only just returned to Overwatch, so I'm hardly in the best position to comment on the Petras Act. If I'm honest though, I wasn't the right person. We needed a symbol, someone who showed the world the best that Overwatch could be."
Angela finally caught on to what Morrison had done. "This was never about addressing their concerns, was it?"
"Not exactly." Morrison admitted, looking over to the nearby screen. "It wouldn't have mattered what we said, the UN wouldn't have listened to us... but they damn well might listen to them."
Angela looked over to the screen, seeing live pictures of the crowd outside the UN building. The pictures soon changed to several other locations around the world. Angela watched the names of the cities appear on screen. New York, Washington, London, Paris and Berlin just to name a few. All of them had people out, demanding that the Petras Act be revoked.
This was good news for Overwatch, yet Angela knew that something wasn't right.
"Jack... back in King's Row. You said that Talon wanted Overwatch to return, that they wanted the Petras Act revoked. Why would they want that?"
"I don't know." Morrison replied. "Whatever their reasons, we have little choice but to play along for now. Just trust me on this."
"We do Jack. Every person at this base trusts you." Angela now turned to Winston, who had kept quiet for most of the debriefing. "Have you been able to find out what happened to Mei?"
Winston lowered his head, walking over to his computer and opening a video file. "I managed to recover this footage from Snowball, just as the team was attacked by Doomfist."
Winston pressed play and the three watched as Snowball hovered over a lifeless Mei. It gently nudged her, trying to wake her up but to no avail. Shortly afterwards, Doomfist picked up the small robot, clutching it in his gauntlet. Despite the camera being obstructed slightly, the three could see Widow, knelt over an unconscious Lena. After taunting her, Doomfist crushed Snowball, ending the video.
"Even though it didn't show exactly what happened, it seems pretty clear. She wasn't moving." Winston said, closing the file and looking down at the small robot, still disassembled on his desk
"At least we know for sure now." Angela finally said, saddened by Mei's fate.
"There's something else." Morrison added, a hint of regret in his voice. "DVa returned from MEKA and brought along some other pilots to help us. While she was there, someone infiltrated the base and managed to get away with classified information... It was Amelie and Lena."
"What?" Angela let out a sigh. "I guess we should have seen this coming... What did she say?"
"It wasn't good. Lena and Amelie are okay but they had to intimidate one of the MEKA pilots to open a door for them. On top of that, Lena's completely powerless to resist Talon. She was begging DVa to help them escape..."
"We can't give up on them Jack."
"I never said that Ang. It's just we haven't got any intel. We don't know where they are and frankly, Lena's desperate right now... look, you should probably go talk to Song about this, she'll be able to explain it better than me. Last I heard, she was in the mess hall."
Angela nodded, letting out another sigh before heading off towards the mess hall. Once she'd left, Morrison turned to Winston.
"If you find anything regarding their location, you tell me immediately."
"Understood."
With the meeting complete, Angela made her way towards the mess hall, intending to speak to DVa before finding something to eat. She made a quick detour to the armoury first, removing her armour so Torb could check it over.
Once she arrived at the mess hall, she quickly recognised a number of agents. McCree was sat with Reinhardt and Zarya, who had recently returned to the base and the three were in deep discussion about something. Angela couldn't tell what exactly, since they were keeping their voices down.
On another table sat Sombra, sitting alone while she looked through her computer. A few tables away sat Fareeha and Ana, who gave Angela a wave when she entered the hall. Sitting opposite them was DVa along with another young girl, who Angela didn't recognise. Suspecting that DVa was already explaining things to Fareeha and Ana, she walked over to them.
"Hey Ang. Meeting go alright." Fareeha asked, as Angela took a seat next to her.
"Well, Jack seems happy enough, so I guess so." She replied before focusing on DVa. "Hana, can I have a word with you. It's about Lena and Amelie."
"Sure. I was just telling Fareeha and Ana about it."
"We saw her friend was a bit shaken up and came over to see what was the matter." Ana added, clarifying why DVa was talking to them about it in the first place.
"What happened?"
"Well, Lena and Widow infiltrated the MEKA base, looking for intel, blueprints, that sort of stuff. They made their way to the pilots quarters but they couldn't get in, since the security on the door had been changed. So, Widow captured Yuna and made her open it."
Hana signalled to the girl sitting next to her, informing Angela who Yuna was.
"Are you okay?" Angela asked her.
"Yeah, I'm okay. Just a bit shaken up. Hana explained what had happened and I don't blame them for what they did. I recognised Tracer but Hana said the other woman was Widowmaker."
"It was but I promise you that she's changed. I don't know exactly what you know about her but trust me. She doesn't want any part of Talon."
"You don't need to cover for her. She's nothing like the rumours say. She seemed... loyal to Tracer."
"What do you mean?"
Hana was the one who answered. "I know what she means. Widow seemed to be the one in command of the mission but she was listening to Lena, letting her lead when I confronted them. They even managed to get out of the base when they were detected without killing a single person."
"Clearly Amelie is still herself and she's doing her best to help Lena. That's something positive at least. How was Lena when you saw her?"
"Honestly, not good. She was desperate, practically begging me to help her. I think the only thing holding her together was the fact Widow was there."
Angela leaned back into her chair, thinking over what she'd just been told. "Did she say anything about where they were being held?"
"No. I don't think they knew... What do we do if we see them again?"
"Honestly, I don't know." Angela admitted. "On the one hand, if we captured Lena and Amelie then they'd either kill Emily or twist her to use against us. Either one would break Lena's heart and likely her want to fight as well. On the other, we can't keep letting them complete their missions, as it'll hurt us in the long term."
"We need to find them." Ana concluded.
"Exactly. We need to find them and soon... otherwise, I dread to think what may happen."
While Angela spoke with the people on her table, Sombra closed down her computer, folding her arms on the table, placing her head on top of them and then closing her eyes. She hadn't slept well the night before, far too busy worrying about Amelie as well as looking on her computer for any sign of them.
There was still nothing. No sign of them, apart from their appearance at the MEKA base. Even when there was a dropship she could follow using satellite images, it disappeared long before it arrived at its destination. She was out of options, out of ideas. Whatever she did, Talon knew how to counter it. She honestly didn't know what to do.
"I want a word with you."
Sombra opened her eyes and raised her head, being greeted by the sight of Zarya. This was the last person she wanted to speak to right now.
"What do you want?" Sombra asked, her tone of voice making it clear she wanted to be left alone.
"Answers."
"Don't we all." Sombra muttered, slightly annoying Zarya.
The Russian leaned down, placing both her hands on the table in front of her. "There's something I don't get about you. I understand you leaving Talon, you're clearly out for yourself, but why help Widowmaker escape?"
"Because it was the right thing to do." Sombra replied dryly, though the answer didn't seem to satisfy Zarya.
"You would never do anything without a reason. You'd want something in return. When you rescued Mercy and Pharah, you asked for their help with Widow. So, why did you help her? What do you get out of it?"
At this point, Sombra stood up, not wanting to continue listening to Zarya. She was almost out the door when Zarya called out to her.
"That's right, just leave. All it does is confirm what I already knew."
Within seconds, Sombra had turned around and practically ran at Zarya, stopping right in front of her. "You don't know anything about me."
"Actually, I know something very important about you."
"No. You know a name. That's it. You don't know anything about what I've been through or who I am. So don't you dare. Don't. You. Dare try that on me."
"I know exactly who you are. You do everything, for a reason."
"I helped her because it was the right thing to do."
At this point, McCree had begun to approach the two, seeing that the conversation between them was becoming heated. He had his hand over his flashbang, ready to throw it in case the situation escalated. The heated conversation had also gained the attention of the other agents and Angela stood and walked over, hoping to be the voice of reason.
"That's enough Zarya." Angela said, seeing Sombra become more and more frustrated.
"You're not at all curious about her motivations." Zarya quickly returned, moving her gaze back to the hacker. "Everything you do has a reason, no matter how big or small. So, tell us, why did you help Widowmaker?"
"Because I saw too much of myself in her!"
Sombra's sudden outburst caught everyone by surprise. The room fell silent and everyone simply listened, as Sombra finally opened up.
"I was orphaned after the Omnic Crisis. I had no one there for me and no one cared about me. Why would they, Mexico was a mess, too busy rebuilding to care about some orphaned children. So I ended up falling into the wrong crowd. I became Sombra... and honestly, I enjoyed it. I enjoyed having the power, being able to twist people to do whatever I wanted. When I joined Talon, I was still out for myself... but when I found Amelie's file... I changed. I was shocked by what I saw, horrified by all the things Talon did to her. She was alone, no one at Talon cared about her and no one was coming to help her... I saw myself. I saw someone who was walking down a dark path and needed someone to help her... and I felt sorry for her. So I decided, there and then that I would change, that I'd do something right with my life, that I would help Amelie in any way I could."
Sombra looked up at the agents closest to her, feeling a tear running down her cheek. Everyone was silent, surprised that the secretive hacker gave up that information. Even Zarya remained quiet, not knowing how to respond.
Eventually, Sombra sighed, before turning and leaving the mess hall. Angela could tell she was barely holding it together and quickly walked after her.
"Nice work Zarya." McCree sarcastically said, as she turned and stepped back to the table she was originally sat at. As she sat down, she could feel Reinhardt watching her, clearly not impressed.
Meanwhile, Sombra had ran away from the mess hall, turning herself invisible so no one could follow her. She ran towards the cliff near Winston's lab, finding Zenyatta sat watching the ocean, along with Genji and Hanzo. Still wanting to be alone, she walked behind the nearby building and turned off her invisibility, sitting herself down against the metal wall.
Here she sat, staring out to the horizon, thinking over her life and counting the mistakes she believed she'd made. She couldn't help but think Zarya was right. Everything she'd done in her life she'd done for herself, never thinking about anyone else. She'd isolated herself, being selective with who she called a friend. It was only when Widow opened up to her that things began to change.
"Are you okay, young one?"
Sombra snapped out of her thoughts, looking up and seeing Zenyatta floating nearby. She had no idea how he knew she was here but she didn't question it, not really caring at the moment.
"No offence but I just want to be alone right now."
Her reply fell on deaf ears, as Zenyatta floated next to her and then sat down.
"Didn't you hear what I just said?"
"I did. Though I do not think you should be alone at this time. Something has clearly upset you."
Sombra sighed. "It's nothing."
Zenyatta remained still, waiting for her to give him a better answer. After a short wait, Sombra decided to just tell him.
"I've not had the best life. I was orphaned after the Crisis, joined a criminal gang, became Sombra and then began helping a terrorist organisation. All while I blackmailed those I could to gain more power... Even when I tried to do the right thing, tried to do something good with my life, I ended up screwing it up... I'm just a failure."
Zenyatta let the hacker vent, listening to what she was saying. He could tell there was something else bothering her, something she would not easily reveal to him. This did not stop him from trying though.
"You are no failure. Why would you consider you are?"
"All I'm good at is hacking and finding out information."
"And this is a bad thing how exactly?"
Sombra tried to answer Zen, yet no words left her.
"The skills we have can be used in many ways. It is up to us how we utilise them."
"I... I guess. Even then, I never used them for the right reasons. When I did, I still couldn't protect Amelie...
"You helped her reach Overwatch in the first place and you wanted to let her choose for herself, correct?"
Sombra gave Zen a weak nod.
"Then you did not fail her. You helped give her the ability to choose her own path."
Sombra sighed again. "Can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"Am I a bad person?"
Zenyatta was somewhat surprised by this question but he was determined to answer it nonetheless.
"I can see that you are full of self doubt. You believe that your past actions define who you are now. This is far from the truth. Who we were ten years ago may not be the same person we are today. Despite what you have done in the past, you decided to help Amelie escape Talon and have stuck by her during her time here. Is this the same person that you were ten years ago?"
"No. No it isn't."
"Then the answer is clear. You are not a bad person. We all make mistakes in life. It is the lessons we learn from them that define us. So use the lessons you have learnt to better yourself."
Sombra didn't know how but Zenyatta had actually made her feel a bit better. "You're pretty good at this, you know that?"
"Why thank you."
At this moment, Angela walked around the corner, stopping a short distance away. Zenyatta decided to let Angela take over, gently floating up from his sitting position.
"You are not a bad person, Sombra. All you did was make a mistake. So do not let your past define who you are now."
With that Zenyatta left, leaving Sombra and Angela alone. The medic gently stepped over and sat down next to the hacker, looking at the view in front of her.
"Seems you found a nice view."
"I wasn't really looking for it if I'm honest."
There was a short pause before Angela spoke up again.
"I know what it's like to be in your shoes. I lost my parents to the Omnic Crisis and I know what it's like to feel isolated from the world because of it. So don't for a second think that you're alone because that's far from the truth. If you ever need someone to just talk things through with, I'm here."
Sombra didn't immediately reply and for a moment, Angela worried that Sombra wasn't listening. Thankfully, this idea was proven wrong.
"I've never opened up about my past before... not until Amelie anyway. She knows more about me than most people do."
"Amelie means a lot to you, doesn't she?"
Sombra gave a short nod.
"Are you two..?"
"Honestly, I don't even know. We trust each other and are able to open up but... I never got the chance to talk to her about it. Don't know if I ever will now."
Angela placed a hand on Sombra's. "You will get the chance. We will find her."
Just then, Sombra's computer let off an alert, signalling that her search had found something. She opened up her screen and looked over what information had been found. She didn't get her hopes up though, not expecting anything major other than whispers at this point, especially due to the size of the message in front of her. However, once she began reading through what the search had found, she was forced to stop and re-read it.
Person of interest identified-
Name- Baptiste
Last known location- Dorado, Mexico
Relevant data downloaded and compiled into attached file
Action required.
"No way."
"What is it? Who's this Baptiste?" Angela asked, reading through the small note on Sombra's screen.
"An old friend. He's ex Talon, left them some time ago. I check in on him from time to time but I haven't heard from him for a while now. If I just found something on him..."
"Then Talon might know where he is."
"Exactly. Now that I think about it, he may be willing to join Overwatch, especially since I'm here. He knows me, so I might be able to convince him."
"You should speak to Morrison about this. We need all the help we can get and another ex Talon agent would be very helpful."
Credenhill- United Kingdom- 00:03
Captain Jameson was standing over a holotable, looking over the intel package that had just been forwarded to him. Next to him was Buck, who had dropped what he was doing to help Jameson analyse the information they'd been given.
Upon receiving the initial call, Jameson had been given command over this situation and had the authority to authorise an operation if he felt it necessary. He'd also done exactly what the unknown individual said and had not contacted Overwatch about this. Since Tracer's life was at risk, he decided to be cautious.
"Any idea who sent this?" Buck asked, once he finished an initial reading of the intel.
"No. They're clearly Talon, or at least someone inside Talon. Perhaps they want out." Jameson replied, running a hand over his beard.
"Maybe. Or maybe it's just a trap."
"Bit of an odd trap isn't it? Surely they would have sent this to Overwatch instead of us."
"Fair point." Buck admitted. "They spoke to you directly, didn't they?"
"Yes. Used one of the old Overwatch codes to gain access. Command thought it was Overwatch at the time, which is why the call was passed on." Jameson explain, as he considered what they should do with the information they had.
"So, according to this, Tracer's being held in a facility under the Black Forest in Germany. The intel we have gives a lot of detail about how to get inside, as well as access codes and patrol routes. Whoever this is, they must be high up in Talon. They know too much to be a simple grunt."
"I've seen that look before." Buck began, suspecting he knew what Jameson was thinking. "It's risky sir. Other than this, we're going in completely blind. For all we know, we're just walking into a trap."
"I'm well aware of that Buck... but this is Tracer we're talking about. She's more than just one person. She's a symbol for Overwatch."
"As are most, if not all of the Overwatch agents."
"Exactly. They're all symbols. So if she fell under Talon's influence... it could do untold damage."
"That's another fair point you've made." Buck said, finding himself agreeing with Jameson. "It's your call sir. I can tell you that the team will be behind you no matter what."
Jameson considered for a few moments longer. "Even with the risks involved, we need to act on this intel. Assemble the team and bring them up to speed. I'll contact command and see if we can get some help from the Germans."
"Didn't the message say to go alone?" Buck asked.
"It said to not tell Overwatch or have them involved. Never said anything about going in alone."