A House Divided
Dorado, Mexico- 13:53- The next day
It felt unusual for Sombra to be walking through the streets of Dorado again. It had been a while since she was last here and she wondered how much had changed since her last visit. From her initial inspection, it didn't seem that much had. The one thing that she could confirm hadn't changed was the bakery, which she hoped she'd have the chance to go to before she left. The streets were busier than usual, yet they weren't too busy, something that proved to be very helpful to the person who'd accompanied her.
When she'd told Morrison about Baptiste, she'd expected him to order one of the other agents to accompany her. What she hadn't expected was Morrison himself to come along instead. It didn't massively surprise her though. Morrison had made himself known in Dorado, mostly for attacking Los Muertos. Thanks to him, the gang had stepped back its operations for some time but they were starting to become more confident again.
Before they'd arrived, Sombra had done some digging and found out that Baptiste had made contact with Los Muertos. Or to put it better, Los Muertos had a vendetta against him. Facts were sketchy but the best Sombra could find was that Baptiste had protected one of their victims, leading to a shootout between him and a few gang members. Nothing he couldn't handle of course. Yet it did complicate things.
Since the gang were out for his blood, Morrison knew that Baptiste would be lying low, perhaps trying to find a way out of the city. So, while Morrison scouted out nearby Los Muertos activity, Sombra scouted around the area, seeing if she could find out anything. Unfortunately, she didn't have much luck. After a few more minutes, she found a bench and took a seat, thinking for a moment. She wasn't sure how long past before she heard someone speak, breaking her train of thought.
"Excuse me miss, you seem a little lost. Are you okay?"
Sombra looked up to see a young girl in front of her, holding a small pouch, which she suspected had money in it. She considered that she'd seen this girl before somewhere, yet she couldn't quite place where.
"Gracias but I'm fine." Sombra replied. "I'm just trying to find someone."
"Maybe I could help." The young girl said, taking a seat next to Sombra. "Do you know where they live?"
"It's not quite that easy I'm afraid... Don't suppose you've heard anything about a hero on the street or anything?" Sombra asked, considering it a long shot.
"Do you mean the Soldier or the Medic?" The girl replied, smiling slightly upon hearing the question.
Sombra suspected that the Soldier was in fact Morrison. After all, he'd left his mark on Dorado. She didn't know who the Medic was though and considered that this may have been Baptiste.
"Who's the Medic?"
"He's like the Soldier, yet he helps people when they're injured too. There's a story that he stepped in when Los Muertos were attacking some people, wanting their money. They ran off and he treated their wounds. When they were healed, he told them to run, as ten gang members attacked him. He fought all of them off and then disappeared."
"When did this happen?" Sombra questioned, now certain the girl was talking about Baptiste.
"A few days ago... I hope he's okay."
"I'm sure he will be." Sombra replied, before standing up, expecting Morrison to be at their agreed meetup location. "Thanks for talking with me."
As she began walking away, the girl spoke up again.
"Are you one of those heroes?"
Sombra stopped, thinking over the question. "I'm not really the hero type."
"It doesn't matter who you are. Anyone can be a hero."
"I guess it's time I found out then."
Sombra waved goodbye to the young girl, before heading off towards Morrison's location. It wasn't too far away, only a few minutes away on foot and down an alley once used by Los Muertos. That was until Morrison and the gang engaged each other. Afterwards, they abandoned it, not knowing if anyone else knew what they were doing.
When Sombra arrived, she couldn't see Morrison anywhere. She was just about to contact him when a truck drove into the alley and two men jumped off. Los Muertos to be precise. The driver of the truck also stepped out of the driving seat, yet decided to sit on the front of the truck instead.
"What do we have here?" The one gang member said, as they approached Sombra, clearly looking for trouble.
"Don't you recognise me?" She replied, wondering if the two would remember her from her days in the gang.
The one gang member chuckled. "Yeah, we do. Talon's got a price for you. Dead or alive. Alive pays more though."
The two gang members laughed, pulling out knifes and ordering Sombra to follow. Before she could react by pulling out her weapon, someone else spoke up.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
The two gang members turned around, seeing the glowing red visor of Soldier 76 and the driver of the truck, either unconscious or dead. They considered their options, knowing full well what had happened to countless gang members before them.
"What do you want?" The one gang member eventually asked.
"Information. This Medic that's been bothering you. Where is he?" Morrison told them, stepping forward towards the two terrified gang members. They knew who he really was and they knew he wouldn't hesitate to kill them if he needed to.
Once he was close enough, the one lunged forward, trying to stab Morrison. This proved to be a foolish move, as Morrison took ahold of the gang members hand before throwing them behind him, pulling out his pistol and firing a single round afterwards. This was enough to scare the remaining gang member to drop his knife.
"He's in an apartment block nearby. You're too late though, the gang's already going to take him out."
"Thanks." Morrison said, before firing his pistol and killing the gang member. "That's the third one that's said that. It's clearly true."
"Did you really need to kill them?" Sombra asked, slightly shocked by Morrison's actions. Not that she cared that much. She had no loyalty to Los Muertos anymore.
"Los Muertos are a cancer on this city and they're linked to Talon. The less of them on the streets, the better."
"They're not all bad. Some of them want to get out."
"Then they'll be clever enough to take the warning. Now, we need to move."
Sombra wasn't phased by Morrison's bluntness. After working with Reaper, she was all but used to it at this point. Even then, it still was a little surprising to see the strike commander of Overwatch act this way. He'd changed since those days.
It didn't take them long to reach the apartment block in question, Morrison already knowing exactly where to go thanks to one of his earlier interrogations. When they arrived, the situation was already out of hand. Los Muertos had surrounded a five floored apartment block, blocking off any potential exits. On top of that, they were firing into the fourth floor, exchanging shots with an unknown individual, which they assumed was Baptiste.
"Athena, have the dropship ready to go. We'll likely need a fast exit."
"Understood Commander."
"What's the plan of attack?" Sombra asked him, watching as a Los Muertos gang member was shot as they moved cover.
"You have the best chance to get in there. Go in, find this guy and keep him alive. I'll work my way through this lot and meet you inside."
"Got it."
Sombra turned herself invisible, running towards the apartment block. A small group of gang members had grouped up inside the building, waiting to see how many of them got inside before they tried to attack Baptiste. As ten gang members made it inside and a few more trucks full of gang members arrived, Morrison began his attack.
He fired his helix rockets at the nearest truck full of enemies, causing a high amount of damage to the vehicle. Three gang members were also killed, while several more were injured. The rest of the gang now turned their attention to Morrison, now fighting on two fronts.
"What now?" One of the gang members inside the building said, looking out the door and instantly regretting it. "Not him. Anyone but him!"
"Who?" Another gang member questioned.
"That soldier guy. You know, 76 on his back."
"He's after this guy too. We need to beat him there."
While the gang members discussed the ongoing events, Sombra snuck herself past them and ran up the stairs, hearing gunfire from outside. Once she reached the fourth floor, she found two different apartments, one door on either side. She took a wild guess and knocked on one, taking cover next to it in case Baptiste simply shot through the door. Thankfully, he didn't and instead opened the door, aiming his rifle as he did.
"Any chance I can come in?" Sombra said, as Baptiste looked around to see who had knocked the door.
"Suppose you can." He replied, stepping back and allowing the now visible Sombra inside. "Didn't think Talon would send you of all people."
"They didn't. I'm not part of Talon anymore."
"Wasn't expecting that." Baptiste commented, before looking out the boarded up window and seeing Soldier 76 tearing through his targets. "He with you?"
"Yeah. It's a long story but right now, we should probably deal with the people coming up the stairs."
"Good idea."
Baptiste and Sombra aimed at the door, as the gang members broke through. The first was gunned down within seconds, not expecting the occupants to be prepared for their attack. Another two went down trying to enter the apartment, while another ended up shot through the wall. The remaining six stayed further back, waiting for someone to walk out of the apartment. With a brief moment of pause in the attack, Baptiste looked out the window, realising that the fighting outside had stopped.
"Where's your friend?"
Just as he asked this, screams were heard from the stairs, as well as gunshots. Moments later, someone took cover next to the door.
"Area's clear."
Sombra placed a hand over Baptiste's rifle and he quickly lowered it, seeing that this was someone friendly. "You can come in."
Morrison walked around the corner and Baptiste would have normally been impressed to see he didn't have a single scratch on him. However, he expected nothing less from the man in front of him.
"Jack Morrison. It's an honour to meet you."
"I see you know who I am then."
"You sent a message that's been all over the news. Who doesn't at this point?"
"These idiots it seems."
Baptiste chuckled at the reply. "I don't think they even watch the news. So, why are you here?"
Morrison nodded towards Sombra, signalling that she would answer that question. "Don't be too long Sombra. More could be on their way."
Morrison turned to keep an eye on the stairs, while Sombra began her explanation.
"It's a long story. A really long story actually. The short version is that I need your help."
"You need my help, or Overwatch need it?"
"Both. Look, the reason Talon are out for my blood is because I helped Widowmaker escape..."
"Widowmaker? As in Talon's best assassin Widowmaker? You know who she is, right?"
"She's changed. Talon's influence, their conditioning, it's all gone. She's a different person now. But Talon recaptured her along with Tracer."
Baptiste looked at Sombra sceptically. "So, you want me to help find them?"
"Not exactly... Look, Overwatch really needs all the help it can get. You could make a real difference..."
"I know I owe you Sombra but this... I don't know."
"Please Baptiste. I'm desperate at this point. Amelie is... she's important to me."
Baptiste raised an eyebrow. "Wow. You've really changed."
"Yeah... I guess some of Overwatch rubbed off on me."
At this point, Morrison walked back into the apartment. "We ready to move out?"
"I don't know." Baptiste answered. "I don't really do associates, not since I joined Talon."
"Look kid, if you're half as good as Sombra says you are, then we could really use your skill set. There are people out there who need protection from Talon and from what I've been hearing on the streets here, that's exactly what you're good at."
Baptiste thought for a moment, before extending out his hand. "Haven't been part of a team for a long time now. Can't be as bad as Talon."
Morrison shook his hand. "Welcome aboard. Athena, get the dropship here."
"Yes commander."
"Is there any word on Amelie or Lena?"
"Negative, Commander."
Morrison sighed. "Understood. Keep me updated on any developments."
The Black Forest, Germany- 22:15
A team of six black suited soldiers were making their way through the forest, using the darkness to mask their movements. The sky above them were full of clouds and the rumbles of thunder could be heard in the distance. The team were heading towards a small village, in order to meet up with a second team already in the area.
"Alright, keep your weapons tight." Jameson said, as they neared the rendezvous location. "German team will already be on location."
"Have they given any further intel sir?" Buck asked, as the team continued forward.
"Negative. They were still scouting the area and will give us a full rundown when we arrive."
"Understood sir. You think this intel's good?"
"It better be."
As the team continued forward, the sky's above rumbled once again.
"That storms getting closer." Buck said, as the flash of lighting could be seen in the distance.
"Good. We can use it to hide our movements." Jameson replied, considering that they'd have to create an entry point into the Talon facility.
It was another ten minutes before the team saw movement in front of them, Jameson holding up his hand to stop the force from firing at the unknown figures. He then made a couple of hand gestures, which was followed by a different gesture from one of the figures in front of them.
"It's the German team." Jameson said, the rest of his team lowering their weapons and moving forward to join them. The group leader of the German squad walked towards Jameson, the two shaking hands.
"You must be Captain Jameson." The German said, a thick accent clear in his voice.
"What have you found out?"
"We've been here a few hours now and observed a number of Talon soldiers moving around the area. There's definitely a base underground, though we can't determine where exactly or how large it is."
"How about dropships? Any fly over or land in the area?"
"One. It landed in the centre of the village and unloaded a squad of troopers, then took off again. We didn't see them leave the village after they arrived."
"So there must be an entry point somewhere in the village." Jameson concluded, as the two men walked over to the rest of the soldiers, who were watching the small village. "What's the story about this place? Seems a bit odd for Talon to set up shop in a village."
"It's been abandoned since the Omnic Crisis. Eichenwalde is nearby and it's equally abandoned, so it makes sense to set up a base in this area. Lots of places to store equipment and no one really comes around here."
At this point, the German squad leader began talking to another soldier, both speaking German. The one pointed towards the village and Jameson guessed he'd seen something while they'd been talking. After a short wait, the squad leader turned back to Jameson.
"There's been some movement around the building to the right of the village. We think there's a way into the base inside there." He informed Jameson, pointing over to a specific building. "We have a plan to give you the chance to get inside."
"Okay. What is it?"
"We will move to the other side of the village and set off some explosives. That'll get their attention and make them come to us. Then you can sneak inside and find what you're looking for."
"Do you know what that is?" Jameson asked.
"Officially, no. However, after that message Overwatch sent out, it's obvious who's in there. We'll begin our attack when you give the signal."
Jameson nodded, giving the German squad leader his comm channel. "What if you need backup?"
"The army is on standby for that very reason. Don't worry about us, just get inside that base and find the VIP."
"Will do. Good luck out there."
The two teams split up, the German squad heading away from the village, while Jameson's team headed towards the village, stopping a short distance away from a small Talon patrol. After waiting a few minutes, the German team made contact.
"In position. Waiting for your go."
Jameson waited until the soldiers in the patrol seemed to relax, before giving the command.
"Do it."
Within moments, three loud explosions were heard at the opposite side of the village, shocking the Talon soldiers. They instinctively raised their weapons, aiming around the area until their radios came to life. Orders were shouted at them and most of the soldiers began running towards the location of the German forces, as the two sides began fighting.
With the Talon forces now distracted, Jameson ordered his team forward. They took out the remaining Talon forces, their silenced weapons keeping them unheard and hid the bodies before running into the identified building. There were two more Talon troopers inside, guarding a small room containing some ruined furniture and a single wooden door.
The guards were taken by surprise, not expecting to see anyone enter the room due to what they'd heard on the radio, so had little chance to defend themselves. Before they'd even raised their guns, Jameson's team had eliminated them, moving their bodies out of sight.
Jameson now analysed the wooden door, gently turning the handle and finding out the door was actually open. However, as soon as he opened it, he was met with another door, this time a sealed metal one.
"Strange looking cupboard you found there." Buck joked, walking over next to Jameson. "Probably will need some explosives to get through that."
Just then, another rumble of thunder echoed through the area, only just louder than the fighting in the distance. Jameson quickly found some explosives, taking them from one of his team members and attached them to the door. The team moved out of the room and Jameson readied the detonator, watching the sky and waiting for the next flash of lighting.
It wasn't long until the sky flashed and Jameson pressed the detonator. The explosion was masked by the thunder, yet Jameson suspected that the breach would have alerted someone inside the base. With this in mind, he ordered his team inside.
"Weapons free. We need to find Tracer and quickly."
"Command centre seems like a good place to start." Buck pointed out, as the team gunned down two guards, disorientated by the door exploding.
"Good call. We can get some intel at the same time."
The team continued through the facility, yet they quickly realised how few enemy soldiers they were encountering. It was almost as if the majority of the force inside the base were elsewhere.
"Getting a bad feeling here Captain." Buck said, as he checked a corner and saw no one there. "Last time there weren't any troopers around, half a base exploded. What's going on this time?"
"Stay on mission Buck. We're coming up on the command centre."
Buck pulled out his shotgun and aimed at the door, while the rest of the team grouped up around it, ready to move inside and clear it out. Jameson readied a flashbang, opening the door ever so slightly and throwing it inside. Once it went off, Buck kicked the door open, firing at the first target he saw. The rest of the team entered soon after and the occupants of the command centre fell one after another. With the room now clear, Jameson pointed to the main computer.
"Someone download everything on that computer, the rest of you find out where Tracer is."
One trooper went to the computer, inserting a memory stick and quickly copying the contents of the hard drive. The rest of the squad checked the room over, looking for anything relating to Tracer. It was Buck who found something first, after checking the security cameras.
"Captain, you need to see this."
Jameson jogged over, expecting to see Tracer, along with Emily in a cell. However, he was almost left speechless at what he saw instead.
"What on earth have you gotten yourself into this time Oxton?" Jameson muttered to himself, before speaking to his team again. "We need to get down there. Get that intel, double time!"
Talon facility interior- Ten minutes earlier
Widowmaker sat in the armchair of the shared room, deep in thought while Lena and Emily talked. She didn't know what they were talking about, since she was too occupied with her own thoughts. She still didn't know what Reaper was planning and frankly it was concerning her. She didn't doubt he could get her out, yet she was concerned with how exactly he'd do this.
Her train of thought was soon interrupted, as someone knocked on the door to the room. Lena instinctively flinched, looking towards Widow while hugging Emily. Widow could tell Lena's time here was getting to her, so she took the lead, opening the door while wearing a blank expression. On the other side was a Talon soldier, clearly unhappy that he'd been sent here.
"You're wanted in the medical bay." He told Widow, not wanting to hang around much longer.
"Why?" Widow asked.
"I don't know why. Just get down there."
The trooper marched off and Widow just rolled her eyes. She turned to Lena, silently asking if it was okay for her to leave.
"You better go see what they want. Just... be careful." Lena said.
"I will." Widow replied, before stepping out and closing the door behind her.
The medical bay wasn't too far away and she reached it within a few minutes of getting the message. However, when she stepped inside, the door behind her slammed shut. In front of the door sat a woman in a white doctors coat, who had terror plastered on her face.
Widow turned around in confusion and came face to face with Reaper, who was holding one of his shotguns in his hand. Widow went to hug him, yet he stopped her and pointed at a chair in the room.
"There's a tracking device in your right arm."
Widow didn't need to reply, wriggling her right arm out of her outfit and sitting down on the chair. The doctor went to inject her with anaesthetic but was stopped by Widow before she could do it.
"Don't bother. Just take it out."
The doctor looked up to Reaper, seeing him motion for her to continue. She moved as quick as she could, slicing into Widow's arm and finding the small tracking device. It wasn't too deep into her arm, so it was easily removed. The doctor then sealed up the wound and cleaned up the blood, which was very little thanks to Widow's slow heartbeat, before bandaging the wound for good measure.
With the device removed, Widow stood up and inspected the bandage on her arm. Once she was satisfied it would hold, she wriggled her arm back into her outfit.
"What about Tracer?"
"What about her?"
Widow looked straight at Reaper. "She'll have a tracker in her as well."
Reaper simply shrugged. "Not my problem. Let the British team get her out."
Just as he said this, an alarm went off in the base, before someone spoke over the intercom.
"All units to defensive positions. We are under attack."
Widow now stepped towards Reaper, pointing her finger at him. "I don't care what your plan is, I'm not going anywhere without her."
"And in turn, she won't go anywhere without her girlfriend. They'll only slow us down."
"I don't care."
Reaper groaned, pushing Widow aside and walking over to the doctor. "Where is the tracker in Tracer?"
"In her accelerator. It'll take a while to take it out and I'm not the person to do that."
Reaper turned back around to Widow. "See. It'll take too long."
Widow on the other hand wasn't convinced. "What about her girlfriend?"
"She doesn't have one. Talon planned to kill her eventually, so it wasn't worth it."
"I'm not helping them." Reaper said, folding his arms in the process. "Let that British team get her out, I don't really care."
Widow now grabbed onto Reaper's coat, pulling him towards her with a strength that actually surprised him.
"Listen to me Gabriel. I'm not going anywhere without them. So, whatever you're plan is, we all go. No debate. No arguing. Nothing."
Reaper and Widow stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, Reaper gave in.
"Fine." He grumbled. "You've gone soft."
"You say that like it's a bad thing?"
"It is when it involves me getting you to safety. In any case, you need your equipment."
"What about her?" Widow asked, pointing to the doctor, who sank further into her seat.
Reaper calmly walked over, patting the doctor on the shoulder before grabbing her head and snapping her neck.
"One less loose end."
The two now made their way to the armoury, none of the soldiers moving through the base taking any notice of them. When they arrived, Widow was surprised to see a small squad of troopers, who all saluted when they entered. On top of that, her equipment was sitting on a nearby table.
"We checked her equipment over. There's no trackers inside anything." One soldier reported.
"We need Tracer's equipment too." Reaper told the soldier, who gave him a quick nod before walking off to find it. While they did this, Widow placed her grappling hook and thermal goggles on and then checked over her rifle. She also grabbed a pair of pistol holsters, placing Tracer's pulse pistols in them when the soldier finally found them.
"How many squads are there in total?" Reaper asked the soldier, which Widow assumed was the commanding officer of the unit.
"Three sir, though that could change depending on the situation."
"Guess that'll work. Move them into position and await my command."
"Yes sir." The commander signalled to his troops to move out, leaving Widow and Reaper alone in the armoury.
"How did you get three squads to help?" Widow asked.
"They're full of people in Talon that owed me a favour. Besides, it's me. If I tell a soldier to do something, they more than likely will. Now, we better go get Tracer. Don't want to leave her behind, do we?"
Widow sighed at Reaper's sarcastic comment, before the two made the trip back to the shared room.
Meanwhile, Lena was pacing around the room, now very on edge due to the attack on the Talon base. Emily was also nervous, standing and walking over to her girlfriend. Lena stopped pacing and the two hugged tightly, not saying a word. It was only when the door began to slowly open that the two separated, Lena instinctively walking in front of Emily.
When the black robed Reaper entered the room, Lena pushed Emily back, the nightmare she'd had coming straight back into her head. She began to plan out how she'd attack him, in an attempt to keep Emily safe no matter what. She knew it would be a doomed attempt, yet she had to try.
Thankfully for Lena, Reaper didn't try to grab her or Emily. Instead, he just stared straight at them, while Widow appeared from behind him, closing the door to the room and then walking over.
"We have to go. Right now." Widow sternly said, passing Lena her pulse pistols.
Not taking her eyes of Reaper, she slowly took her weapons and then aimed them at him.
"What's he doing here?" She asked, her voice shaking ever so slightly.
"He's here to help us."
"What?!" Lena said, in complete shock. "He's helping us? He hates us! Why on earth would he ever consider helping us?"
"For the record, I didn't. I'm only here because she won't leave without you." Reaper clarified, only confusing Lena further.
"But why not just..?" Lena lowered her weapons, the pieces suddenly falling into place. "It was you. You're Morrison's inside man. You told him about Amelie and Sombra..."
"Inside man? I might have told him about Sombra's jailbreak and Amelie's conditioning but I'm far from an inside man."
"Wha..? Why? I don't understand, why help her? You hate Overwatch and anyone to do with it. So why are you helping her?"
"I don't have to explain myself to you, Oxton. Now, are we leaving or not?"
Reaper turned and left the room, closing the door behind him. Lena just looked to Widow, confusion and disbelief very clear on her face.
"Why? Why is he helping you Amelie?"
"I will explain everything to you later, I promise. Right now though, this is our best chance of escaping. We need to go."
"I... I don't trust him."
"Then trust me. I promise you we will get out of here."
Lena was silent for a brief moment, before nodding her head. "I trust you Amelie. I'm not comfortable with it but if you say he'll get us out, then I believe you.
"There's... there's something else. Talon put a tracker inside your accelerator and we don't have time to remove it."
Lena looked down at her accelerator, debating what to do. I'm the end, she knew there was little choice but to leave it alone. As Widow said, they didn't have time to try and remove it.
"What about Em?"
"She's clean. Talon didn't bother putting one in her."
Lena nodded. "It'll be fine. Come on Em, we're leaving."
Just before they left, Emily grabbed Lena's jacket and put it on.
"You know, my jacket looks really good on you." Lena flirtatiously commented, the first lighthearted comment she'd made since they'd arrived.
"I'll make sure to steal more of your clothes when we're back home." Emily replied, winking at Lena before they both heard Widow groan.
"There's a time and a place."
"Right, Sorry luv."
The three emerged from the room, just as an explosion was heard. Some of the lights went out and an alarm went off. However, that wasn't the thing concerning Reaper the most. Despite what the protocol for a base attack was, not a single Talon soldier was in sight. Even with most their manpower occupied, some soldiers would remain to guard the interior.
"Something's not right."
"Lack of security?" Widow asked, knowing what he was thinking.
"Correct."
"What's the base size?"
"Medium."
"Should be some security, even during an attack."
"Exactly. Stay close." Reaper began to walk, leading the group towards the lower levels, where there were emergency escape tunnels. As he did this, he activated a radio. "All teams, you are clear to proceed."
The journey was uneventful and all this did was make everyone nervous. Eventually, Reaper pulled out his weapons, knowing full well something was wrong. This suspicion was confirmed once they reached the tunnels, which were guarded by a small army of soldiers, as well as Doomfist, who was wearing his gauntlet and a full set of combat armour.
"Not part of the plan I'm guessing?"
"Shut up Oxton." Reaper told Lena, as more Talon soldiers appeared behind them, surrounding them.
Once their escape route was blocked, Doomfist chuckled. "I certainly wasn't expecting this. You helping Widowmaker definitely but Tracer too? This is very surprising."
Reaper remained silent, looking at the soldiers around him. He swore that a few flinched when he looked at them.
"I'm surprised your toy soldiers are even here. After all, they're clearly more afraid of me than you."
Doomfist chuckled again. "We have you Reyes. Surrender, or I'll be forced to kill you."
Reaper couldn't help but let out a sadistic laugh, one that scared some of the soldiers around him. "I invite you to try."
"And what about the people behind you Reyes. Are you willing to risk Amelie dying?"
Reaper went silent again and Doomfist believed he'd found his weakness. However, Reaper shifted his gaze back into the soldiers, speaking to them directly.
"You all know what I'm capable of. None of you can kill me and I'm betting you're doubtful I can even die. So, if you value your lives, turn your weapons on Doomfist."
The soldiers remained still, all looking at one another. Eventually, one changed their target, aiming straight at Doomfist. Another two followed suit before other soldiers aimed at them. Then more aimed at these soldiers, until no one knew who was aiming at who. To add to the confusion, another Talon squad appeared, all aiming towards Doomfist, while some of the troopers moved over to him, aiming at the new squad that had just appeared.
"We really don't want to be in the middle of this." Lena commented, while Emily instinctively grabbed onto her arm.
"Agreed." Widow said, stepping back towards her, ready to push them to safety, wherever that may be.
"I'm curious. What exactly was your plan Reyes? You break out Lacroix and Oxton and then walk out of the base. That was hardly going to work."
Reaper didn't answer, staring straight ahead at Doomfist and unnerving some of the soldiers. Eventually, Reaper turned his head and spoke directly to Widow.
"Remember what I did back in the museum?" He asked, spinning his shotgun around so that she understood what he was telling her. Widow gently nodded, dropping her weapon and stepping next to Lena and Emily.
"You're giving up? A wise decision."
Reaper chuckled. "Not exactly."
Before Doomfist could say anything else, black smoke began to swirl around Reaper and he realised what he was about to do.
"Take cover!"
Doomfist used his gauntlet to quickly move out of the way, while Widow spun around and pushed Lena and Emily to the ground, Lena wrapping an arm around Emily and telling her to close her eyes. The soldiers meanwhile didn't have much chance to react, as Reaper began to fire in every direction. Some were able to drop to the ground, mostly the squad that appeared late. The others weren't so lucky and were shredded by the onslaught of bullets.
As Reaper finished his death blossom, his attention returned to Doomfist, who was powering up his gauntlet, ready to strike him. Reaper wraithed just in time, avoiding the impact of the gauntlet and then returned to normal. He aimed his weapons and fired, while the squad of soldiers loyal to him began firing at Doomfist, as well as any other soldiers that happened to still be alive.
At this point, Doomfist changed targets, leaping into the rogue squadron and attacking them. Two soldiers went down almost instantly, while the others tried their best to take him out. His armour took the few bullets that managed to impact him, as he made quick work of the squad of soldiers.
While Doomfist was distracted, Widow grabbed her rifle and stood up, pulling Lena and Emily to their feet and then pushing them back the way they'd come. A few soldiers tried to stop them, still loyal to Doomfist and somehow still kicking after the chaos that just unfolded. However, Widow wasn't prepared to let anything stop them, gunning down the few troopers in their way.
Doomfist saw the three prisoners escaping and went to go after them, yet his path was instantly blocked by Reaper, who appeared in front of him. He fired several shots, causing damage to Doomfist's armour in the process.
"You picked the wrong person to lie to Akande."
"You've proven why I couldn't trust you. Now, get out of my way."
Reaper did no such thing, throwing away his guns and reaching for a new set. "You should never have taken Amari."
Doomfist ran out of patience, punching Reaper through the ceiling, barely avoiding a group of Talon soldiers above them. They were on their way to apprehend the escaping prisoners, yet were now blocked by both Doomfist and Reaper.
"She was a means to an end." Doomfist said to Reaper, as he removed a now damaged piece of armour.
"So were you." Reaper replied, readying a new set of weapons.
Doomfist turned to the soldiers watching the fight unfold. "Take Reaper down, NOW!"
Reaper laughed once again, bloodlust taking over. "I am the angel of death. Now DIE!"
While Reaper and Doomfist fought, Widow continued to lead Lena and Emily through the base, taking out a few soldiers along the way. She didn't have to attack too many though, since the entire base was currently at war. She had no idea what was going on but it appeared that Talon was in the middle of a civil war, with Doomfist and Reaper as the opposing leaders.
Eventually, they reached a corridor full of soldiers, that weren't fighting each other. As soon as they saw the three escapees, they opened fire. Lena dragged Emily to cover with her, behind the right side of the doorway, while Widow took cover at the other side. Widow was just about to return fire when she heard the troopers cry out in pain and the fighting in front of them stop. She looked down the corridor, seeing a group of black clad soldiers where the Talon ones used to be.
"Hold fire, they're friendly... Another fine mess you've gotten yourself into Oxton."
Lena stepped out of cover, recognising the voice. "Ross! Am I glad to see you!"
"Likewise. Now, there'll be time for catching up later. Right now, we need to get out of here."
"Right. Lead the way."
Now Jameson took the lead, turning around and heading back towards the entrance they'd created a short time ago. Several Talon troops stood in their way and the team was forced to stop and engage. Jameson told Widow and Lena to stay back, Widow only providing cover fire while Lena protected Emily.
As they reached the door, they found two squads of soldiers attacking each other, completely oblivious to Jameson's squad approaching them. They held position and waited for the Talon troopers to fall, finishing off whoever was lucky enough to survive.
"The hell's going on here?" Buck asked, not understanding what was going on.
"Reaper appears to have gone rogue." Lena answered, not quite sure herself.
"Oh great. Just what we needed." Buck said, as the team reached the entrance and finally left the Talon facility. There was another rumble of thunder, as the storm had gotten much closer.
Once the group was outside, Jameson activated his earpiece.
"This is Jameson. I need an extraction now!"
"Roger that Captain, extraction is two minutes away. German forces still have Talon distracted, so make your way to the LZ."
"Copy that. Buck, take point. The rest of you fan out and cover the area. There might be Talon troopers looking for us."
Buck raised his weapon, walking out of the building containing the secret entrance first. The rest of the squad split up, giving each other some distance, while Jameson held back, moving with Widow, Lena and Emily.
There wasn't much resistance as they headed to the extraction point, only a couple of Talon soldiers on this side of the village. It seemed as if the rest of the Talon soldiers were too occupied with the German forces, yet Jameson had the uneasy feeling Talon had one more surprise left.
The team reassembled at the LZ, a small opening in the trees, just before a black coloured dropship hovered into view. It quickly landed, the pilot opening the doors and letting the team on board. Once everyone was inside, the pilot began taking off again, closing the doors as the dropship hovered upwards as quickly as it could.
Lena looked out of the dropship widows, watching as they began to fly away from the Talon base. She let out a deep breath, glad they were out of Talon's hands.
"Thank you so much for coming Ross." Lena said, hugging him.
"Well, I could hardly leave you in..." Ross couldn't finish, as an alarm went off inside the dropship. "The bloody hell's that?"
Just then, the pilot's voice came over the dropships intercom. "Rocket incoming!"
The occupants all moved away from the door, preparing for the rocket to impact. The pilot activated the ships countermeasures, yet the rocket continued on its path. Despite the pilots best efforts, the rocket struck the back of the dropship, causing it to begin spinning around. The pilot managed to maintain some control, yet he wasn't able to stop the ship crashing to the ground.
The doors to the dropship opened and the occupants all disembarked. Thankfully no one had been killed. However, when everyone heard something move extremely fast, as well as see a flash of red, they realised they were in a lot of trouble.
"Dropship's down! We need another way out!" Jameson shouted down his earpiece.
"Copy that. We can have one there in about ten minutes."
"Not good enough, we'll be dead in five."
In another stroke of luck, the leader of the German forces contacted Jameson.
"Captain Jameson, we saw your ship go down. We'll try to make our way towards you."
"That's something at least. Everyone to defensive positions!"
Everyone spread out, while the pilot put out the fire at the rear of the dropship. He confirmed that it wouldn't exploded, taking one concern out of Jameson's mind. However, he had no idea what this thing in the forest was. As the unknown target continued to zoom around them, leaping from tree to tree, Lena realised what it was.
"No, no, no. Not this thing."
"What?" Emily asked, unable to catch sight of it. "What is it Lena?"
"A Talon assassin... Emily, get in the dropship and don't come out until I say so."
Emily didn't argue, running back inside the dropship, as Lena stood in front of the door, waiting for the assassin to attack. Widow activated her thermal goggles, catching only glimpses of the assassin as it moved from tree to tree.
Eventually, the assassin decided to attack, jumping down from the trees and running towards the group. Widow saw the assassin too late and couldn't warn its target in time. It leaped onto one of Jameson's team, stabbing them three times before leaping at its next target.
The pilot was next, being stabbed twice before the soldiers could begin shooting it. The assassin was only hit a few times before it disappeared, jumping back up into the trees.
Buck checked over the two attacked troopers, finding out that both were dead. He shook his head at Jameson, reaching for his shotgun and preparing for the next attack.
"Two men down and we've not even scratched it."
The assassin now attacked again, this time running towards Jameson. He attempted to get out of its way, yet it was far quicker. It pinned him to the ground and prepared to kill him. However, just as it raised its arm, Buck shot it straight in the face, the force of the shotgun round pushing the assassin off Jameson. Buck managed to get one more round into the assassin before it retreated again, disappearing into the forest.
"Thanks for that." Jameson said, as Buck helped him back to his feet.
"Don't mention it."
With no visual on the assassin, everyone began aiming in every direction they could. Lena aimed her pulse pistols in two directions, while Widow scanned the forestry using her thermal goggles. While they were searching, there was a flash of lightning and the sky above rumbled. A few drops of rain began falling, as the storm above began to worsen.
Widow eventually stopped scanning the forest, finally catching sight of the assassin. It was sitting on a tree, staring straight at Lena. Somehow, it didn't notice Widow looking at it, meaning she had an advantage over it.
Lena meanwhile kept checking the area, not able to see the assassin. When she turned herself around, she noticed Widow looking right at her. She realised that Widow could see her and it was obvious that she was it's next target.
"Can you see it?" Lena asked silently, Widow reading her lips and nodding ever so slightly.
Remaining silent about it, Lena continued to look around, waiting for Widow to give her a signal. Eventually, the assassin went for the kill, leaping off the tree and running towards Lena, dragging its blades across the ground.
"NOW!"
Just before the assassin reached Lena, she recalled, disappearing just before the assassin could strike. The next thing the assassin saw was a flash from Widow's Kiss, before a bullet impacted it in the head, killing it instantly. Lena reappeared just after the assassin fell, turning around and looking at the dead body at her feet.
"Nice shot luv."
"Merci."
Their victory was short lived, as two large Talon dropships flew overhead, landing some distance away. Widow checked her ammo, groaning as she realised how little she had.
"Bloody hell. We're gonna struggle to beat that many sir." Buck reported.
"Command, where the hell is that dropship?! Command? Someone come in!" With no reply, Jameson knew what Talon had done. "Communication's being jammed. We're on our own."
Lena looked over to Widow, noticing how she looked at her rifle then back up into the forest.
"How much ammo you got left?" Lena asked.
"Six magazines... Not enough to stand and fight..."
Widow looked up at Lena, who in return lightly nodded. They were down to one option. Talon could track Lena wherever they went, yet they couldn't track Widow or Emily. They had to run, without Lena.
"Ross!" Lena shouted, blinking over to him. "I need your knife."
"What? Why?" Lena gently tapped her accelerator and Ross understood immediately what she meant. He pulled his knife out and passed it to her.
"Thanks... I'm... I'm sorry I got you into this mess."
Ross chuckled. "Wouldn't have it any other way Lena. Good luck."
Lena hugged Ross, before she and Widow walked into the dropship. Emily was still inside, sitting near the front of the crippled ship. She stood and went to hug Lena, until she noticed the knife in her hand.
"What's that for?"
"Em... no one can get to us and Talon's closing in. You need to run, you need to get out of here."
"You mean us, right?"
Lena let out a deep breath. "Talon put a tracker in my accelerator. They can find me wherever I go. I can't go with you..."
"No! No, I'm not running while you get recaptured by them."
"I didn't say I was going to let them recapture me..."
With that, Emily realised exactly what Lena meant. She was going to destroy her accelerator.
"No. There has to be another way Lena."
"There isn't time Emily. If you don't go, Talon will kill you. Please... I need you to go."
Lena passed the knife to Widow and then held out her arms, letting Emily embrace her. She began crying, not wanting to watch her girlfriend disappear.
"Shh. It's okay Emily... I'll be okay." Lena said, stroking her head as a few tears escaped her own eyes. She didn't want to do this. She hated the isolation, being nothing more than a ghost. Unfortunately, she didn't see any other way out.
"I'll be waiting for you, okay. You come back to me."
"I will. I owe you that date, remember."
Lena gently moved Emily's head so that she was facing her and gave her a long kiss.
"I love you Em."
"I love you too Lena."
"Help me get this off."
The two separated and Lena began to unbuckle her accelerator, Emily helping her with the back. Once it was off, Lena sat herself down and Widow passed her the knife.
"Amelie... promise me you'll look after my girl. Promise me you won't let anything happen to her... and, when you get back to Gibraltar... talk to Sombra. She needs to know."
"I will. I promise."
Lena nodded, as she moved the knife over her accelerator. As she sat, building up the courage to stab the device keeping her anchored, Emily sat down next to her, placing her own hands on Lena's.
"On three?"
Lena gave Emily an uncertain smile, before she nodded her head and took another deep breath.
"One."
Another pair of hands now joined Lena's and Emily's, as Widow knelt down next to them. She knew what destroying her accelerator meant to Lena and she knew she'd need all the help she could get.
"Two."
Lena nodded at Widow, silently thanking her before focusing back on her accelerator. She may hate what was about to happen but at least this time it was on her terms.
"Three."
The knife was plunged into the accelerator, before being twisted so that it caused as much damage as possible. The device flickered a few times, before the light went out and the accelerator failed.
Lena looked straight into Emily's eyes, having just enough time to say one last thing.
"I love you."
Emily could do nothing but watch, as the woman she loved disappeared in front of her eyes. It felt like a part of her was just ripped out. She didn't have time to grieve though, as Widow tapped on her arm.
"I'm sorry but we have to go."
Emily slowly nodded. "Yeah... okay."
Widow helped Emily to her feet and the two went to leave the dropship. However, they were stopped by Jameson, who was standing in front of the door.
"You'll need these." He said, passing over two items. One was a pistol, with a silencer and a few magazines. The other was a memory stick.
"What's on that?" Widow asked, as she took the pistol and put it into one of the holsters she had.
"It contains intel on Talon. Get it to Overwatch... We'll cover your escape."
Widow gave the captain a short nod, before she took the memory stick from him. Then, she and Emily made their escape, running into the dark forest, away from the approaching Talon forces.
Once the two had vanished into the darkness, Jameson readied his weapon. "Defensive positions."
His squad complied, preparing for the upcoming fight. After a couple of minutes, the Talon forces began to shoot and Jameson's team returned fire. It wasn't long until one of the team fell, unable to match the amount of firepower in front of them. Another trooper saw a grenade and managed to kick it away but not without a bullet hitting him in the process.
With two of the team down, the Talon forces pushed forward, now overwhelming the last three soldiers. The one soldier was hit in the head, killing him instantly and leaving Jameson and Buck as the only two left.
"We can still do this sir." Buck said, as the two took cover behind a broken off part of the dropship. He dropped his weapon and pulled out his shotgun, while Jameson reloaded his weapon.
"Let's make the end something to remember."
The two rose out of cover, firing at the small army in front of them. Buck was the first to fall, taking three shots to the chest in quick succession. Jameson meanwhile continued to fight, taking one round in his right shoulder, then another in his chest.
As the Talon soldiers surrounded him, he took another round in his back and one more in his chest before finally falling to his knees. Jameson looked up at a single Talon trooper, who walked forward to finish him off. With a single shot to his chest, Jameson fell backwards and the fight was over.
With the threats now eliminated, Doomfist stepped out from the forest, his armour badly damaged thanks to his fight with Reaper. He stepped over the body of the fallen captain and walking into the dropship, finding the destroyed accelerator inside. He couldn't help but laugh.
"So, Oxton destroyed her accelerator. How unexpected. Find Lacroix and the girl. Bring them to me."
"What about Reaper sir?" The Talon commander asked.
"He might have escaped us for now, yet he won't be able to hide from us forever. Focus on Lacroix. Bring her to me."
"Yes sir."
Authors note
Hello there.
So, this chapter was longer than usual but I felt like it didn't work as two separate chapters. Besides, it probably makes up for the shorter one quite some time ago. So I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it :)
Also, thanks once again for all the feedback and comments you've all sent me. It means a lot to see that people like the story.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter and see you in the next one :)