Behind Enemy Lines
The Black Forest, Germany- Two hours later
The forest sounded so peaceful to Emily, now that they were away from the fighting. It was still dark, with the clouds above hiding the moon, the only light source that was currently available. The storm above had long passed, yet rain was still pouring down, all of which made navigating the forest a difficult task.
After travelling for some time, Widow and Emily had found an abandoned cabin and Widow decided to stop and take shelter, hoping that the weather improved. The two stepped inside and began drying off, lighting a fire in a small fireplace to help do this. Widow soon stepped back outside, keeping an eye out for any Talon activity, while Emily sat alone, listening as the rain hit the roof of the old cabin.
As the rain continued, Emily reached for Lena's jacket, which she'd taken off so it could dry and placed it back on. Even now, it still hadn't sunk in that Lena wasn't here, currently lost in time all on her own. The jacket was the only thing she had left of her, so Emily wasn't going to leave it behind, no matter what.
After a short time, the door to the cabin opened and Widow stepped inside, her hair dripping wet due to the rain outside. She removed her thermal goggles and sat herself down near the fire, placing the goggles and her weapon down next to her.
"We're safe for now. No one's around."
Emily silently nodded, not sure how to respond. She'd never been in a situation like this before, on the run from an terrorist organisation that would likely kill her without a second thought. It was made even more surreal that the person protecting her was one of the most dangerous assassin's on the planet.
"I'm... I'm sorry about Lena... Will she be okay?"
Emily let out a long breath. "Yeah, she'll be alright... This has happened before. First her accident and then her accelerator was damaged in a fight... It affected her both times and she wasn't herself for a while... but it'll pass... She always recovers..."
Widow gently nodded, moving a couple of wet strands of hair out of her face. "How long have you two..?"
"Been a thing?" Emily said, finishing Widow's question. "I've known her for a lot longer, yet we didn't become a couple until just after Doomfist was captured... What about you? Have anyone special in your life?" She asked, deciding to make conversation with Widow, suspecting that she was trying to help take her mind away from the situation they were in. She doubted that it would work but at least she could get to know who Widow really was.
Widow struggled to find an answer to Emily's question. "I... I don't know. Talon made me kill my husband, so I've not had anyone for years now."
"Oh... I'm so sorry, I didn't know..." Emily said, feeling guilty that she'd brought up the topic.
"It's okay." Widow replied, cutting Emily off. "That was a long time ago now. I found out that he forgave me, that he didn't blame me for what happened. I've brought that part of my life to a close... Recently though, I've not been sure if there's... someone else."
"That Sombra Lena mentioned?"
Widow nodded. "She helped me to move on, to forgive myself for what I was forced to do... She's a good friend... but I don't know if she means more to me."
"You should talk to her about it. You won't know until you do."
Widow nodded again, still unsure. "How did you know? With Lena?"
Emily considered the question for a moment. "I just sorta did... She kinda blurted it out and it took me by suprise but I knew I felt exactly the same way."
Flashback
Lena was currently on leave, recovering from her recent fight with Doomfist. Overwatch managed to capture him, or to put it better, Winston managed to capture him. Genji was put out of action and Lena's accelerator was critically damaged. She disappeared again, only back now thanks to Winston.
Lena currently wasn't her normal self. Ever since Winston had built a replacement accelerator, Lena had been unusually quiet, keeping mostly to herself. Angela had noticed her change of behaviour and so ordered her to take some time off to recover, hoping that some time away from Overwatch would help.
Right now, Lena was sat in her local pub with Emily, waiting for her to return with their drinks. Emily had been keeping her company the last few days, taking time out of her days to make sure Lena was doing alright. Lena was glad she was doing this, not really wanting to be alone right now. However, that wasn't the only reason she was glad Emily was here.
"Here you go." Emily said, as she placed a drink down in front of Emily, before sitting opposite her. Both glasses were filled with Coca Cola, since Emily didn't think giving Lena alcohol was a good idea right now.
"Thanks." Lena said, as she took a gulp of her drink.
"How have you been today?" Emily asked, taking a sip of her own drink.
"Alright I guess... I watched some tv, made myself some lunch... nothing much."
Emily stood and moved her chair next to Lena, placing her hands on Lena's. "Okay, how are you feeling Lena. I can tel you're not yourself lately. Please, don't bottle it all up. Just, talk to me..."
Lena looked up at Emily, unable to say no to her. "Honestly... I don't know Em. I thought I was okay with who I am now, that I'd learned to live with this thing strapped to me." She said, tapping on her accelerator. "But when it was damaged and I disappeared again... it scared me. I realised that if something happens to Winston, I could just vanish and never return. I don't want that to happen Em... I don't want to get stuck, all alone with no way to return..."
Lena began crying and Emily immediately wrapped her arms around her, hugging her.
"Shh. It's okay Lena. That won't happen. Winston would have thought of that and he would have made preparations for just that situation."
"Yeah... yeah, I'm sure you're right... it's just... I don't want to have to go through that again... To be nothing but a ghost... It's horrible... but if I got stuck like that, with no way back..."
"That won't happen Lena... I think you should talk to Winston and Angela about this. They understand it a lot better than I do and they'll help address your concerns."
Lena nodded, wiping away her tears with one of her hands. "Yeah, you're right. I'll do that, don't worry... Thanks Em... you know, for being here and everything."
Emily couldn't help but smile, as Lena looked up at her. "You're welcome Lena. I'm always here for you, no matter what."
Lena looked straight at Emily, seeing her smiling at her. As she looked into her eyes, Lena didn't know what came over her. She leaned forward and kissed Emily, taking her by complete surprise. A few seconds later, Lena realised what she'd done and immediately pulled away, not sure what Emily was thinking.
"I... I'm sorry. I didn't... I didn't mean to do that." Lena said, struggling to find an excuse for what just happened. Emily meanwhile was just as shocked, not sure how she should respond to the situation.
"Um... Lena... why did you..?"
Lena let out a deep breath, going red out of embarrassment. "God this is awkward... Didn't really want to tell you like this but guess I haven't got much choice now." She joked, trying to see the funny side. Truth was, she didn't have a clue how to explain this to Emily, so she just decided to tell her.
"Look, you know that I'm into girls and the last few days, I've had time to think things over... The truth is... The truth is that I like you Em... I mean, really like you. You've always been there for me and you've been a really great mate, my best mate actually. I think you're really pretty... scratch that, I think you're the most beautiful girl in the world and I don't think I'll ever find anyone else like you..."
Lena stopped talking, looking up at Emily. She was still surprised by this, struggling to find any words for what she'd just been told. Lena lowered her head in defeat, suspecting that she didn't feel the same way.
"Look, thanks for the drink Em... but I think I need to get going... Sorry."
Lena quickly headed out the door, leaving Emily sitting in the pub alone. She couldn't believe what just happened, that Lena just kissed her, let alone admitted she had feelings for her. Worse of all, she didn't say a thing and she cursed herself that she was foolish enough to just let Lena go. Without another thought, she ran out of the pub after her, finding her a short distance away.
"Lena, wait!"
Lena looked away, not wanting to face Emily. "Look, I'm really sorry about what happened in there. I've not really been myself as of late... Can we just forget it ever happened?"
"No Lena. I can't just forget what you told me. You know why I can't?"
Lena reluctantly turned around, expecting a long conversation about why Emily didn't feel the same way. "You can't because..."
Before Lena could even finish, Emily grabbed her jacket and pulled her straight towards her, smashing her lips against hers. Lena was surprised at first, yet moments later, she relaxed and melted into the kiss, wrapping her arms around Emily. When they parted for air, Emily had a large smile on her face.
"That's why I can't forget... because I feel exactly the same way."
"Really?"
"Really. Now, how about we head back to the pub and finish our drinks, then go out and watch a movie?"
Lena began smiling, the first time she had since she'd gone on leave. After all this time, she couldn't believe Emily felt the same way.
"It's a date."
Present day
Emily chuckled as she thought over the night she and Lena admitted their feelings to one another. Her smile would soon vanish though, as she returned to the here and now.
"There's no real way of telling someone how you feel." She began, continuing her conversation with Widow. "Lena always said life was too short and you should take every opportunity you can. So, if you think you like her, then you just have to find a way to tell her that works for you."
Widow nodded, taking in what Emily said. It wasn't a topic Widow wanted to spend to long on though, her own thoughts returning to the situation they were in. She reached for the pistol Jameson had given her, currently sitting in a holster and showed it to Emily.
"I'm guessing you don't know how to use this?"
When Emily shook her head, Widow moved over to her, sitting herself down next to her. She then went through everything she considered Emily needed to know, turning the safety off, reloading the weapon and then firing. It took a few attempts before Emily seemed to have a basic understanding. Widow knew she was no soldier but considering the situation, it was good enough.
"That'll work." She said, Emily handing the weapon back to her.
"I'm not very good..."
"You don't need to be. You using this is a last resort. I'm going to stay close to you as much as I can... Now, try and get some rest. We'll stay here for a bit and see if this rain passes, then move out."
Emily took a breath. "Okay. What about you?"
"I'll stay awake and make sure no one sneaks up on us."
"Aren't you tired?"
"Non, I'm fine." Widow replied, standing and heading back towards the door. "Don't worry. It's the way Talon made me. I can stay in the field longer than most people."
Emily just nodded, not sure if Widow was telling the truth. Either way, she guessed she wasn't going to convince her otherwise and lay herself down. Sleeping on the floor wasn't comfortable by a long shot but it was the best she was going to get right now.
Watchpoint Gibraltar
Sombra was currently sprinting towards Winston's lab, the watchpoint unusually active considering the time it was. Her computer was going mad, constantly updating her with new information. Something had happened, something big and she needed to tell Morrison right away.
When she arrived, the lab was in complete chaos. People were running from screen to screen, handing information to each other. Morrison and Ana were standing in the middle of the chaos, occasionally being given something before returning to a intense conversation.
"What's wrong Sombra?" Winston asked her, being the only person in the room who'd actually noticed her.
"I need to talk to Morrison. Something's happened at Talon and he needs to know."
At this point, Morrison had noticed that the hacker had entered the lab and waved her over.
"Don't suppose you have any idea what's going on in Talon, do you?" He asked, once Sombra and Winston reached him.
Sombra opened up her computer, flipping the screen so she could show Morrison what she'd found. "I've intercepted a lot of messages coming from within Talon, all of them on unrestricted channels. There's several mentions of fighting within Talon bases and one base has been designated a complete loss. It's almost like..."
"Like Talon's fighting amongst itself?" Morrison finished.
"Yeah... The fact that Talon's using unrestricted channels means something bad's happened. It's completely against protocol to do this."
Morrison nodded his head, the facts Sombra told him just confirming what he knew. A few moments later, Reinhardt entered the lab, not wearing his armour.
"You wanted to see me commander?"
"How well do you know the Black Forest?"
Reinhardt was somewhat confused by the random question, not sure why Morrison had asked him that.
"Uh... I'd say pretty good. Why do you ask?"
Morrison walked over to the nearby holo-table, while Ana continued to coordinate the operation in the lab. A couple of Overwatch personnel stopped what they were doing and stepped away from the table, so that Morrison could use it. A series of images appeared seconds later, as well as an satellite image of the Black Forest.
"We received a major tip off from the UK regarding an operation in the Black Forest in Germany. They found the Talon base where they were keeping Lena and Amelie at and managed to get them out. However, the entire team sent to get them is down and Amelie and Lena are on the run. We need to find them ASAP."
A section of the map now highlighted in red.
"We know they're not here, since the German military moved in to secure the Talon base. Other than that, we haven't a clue where they are right now. I was hoping you'd have an idea where they might be heading Reinhardt?"
Reinhardt placed his hand on his chin, rubbing his beard as he thought. "Well, if it were me, I'd head away from the fighting and try to stay out of the way. Then, once it dies down, I'd head towards Eichenwalde."
"Problem is, would they do that?"
"Amelie might." Sombra said, opening her own computer and analysing the information she'd collected. "Talon made her into a survivalist. If a mission went very wrong and they couldn't get to her, then she'd lay low and try to make her way for extraction. Talon have set protocols for abandoning a base like this, yet with what I'm intercepting, it's likely they aren't even following them. If Amelie considers she could find a way to contact us from Eichenwalde, that's where she'd go."
"Talon will be looking for them as well. We should send a few dropships and check the whole area out from the air." Reinhardt suggested.
"It's too risky. The German military is all over the area right now. Thankfully, one of our old Blackwatch pilots recently arrived at the watchpoint, as well as one of the dropships."
"Permission to take a team to Eichenwalde sir?"
"Seems we had the same idea Reinhardt. Get a team together, maximum size of six and check out the area, see if you can find them... I can't believe I'm saying this but take the Bastion with you. Talon will likely send a lot of manpower to recapture Lena and Amelie. Make sure they don't do that."
"Understood sir."
"I want to be on that team." Sombra's said, just as Reinhardt began to leave.
"Negative. I need you here to work out what the hell is going on inside Talon."
"But..."
"No buts. You're the closest thing we have to an expert on Talon. You're the best person to try and work this out."
"I can easily do that while in the field... Look, I made a promise to look after Amelie and I failed... She got captured and I'm not going to stay here while she's out there in danger. Please, put me on that team."
Morrison sighed, leaning against the holo-table in front of him and shaking his head. Sombra was dead set on being part of the team and he could tell he was going to struggle to convince her otherwise. Even if he said no, she'd likely just hide on board anyway.
"It's your team Reinhardt."
The German shrugged in response. "Don't see why she shouldn't come along. Considering her stealth abilities, she'd be a very helpful addition."
"Fine. Find three more and get over there. I'll tell the pilot to get ready to move."
The Black Forest- 03:20
Widow had let Emily sleep for a few hours before waking her, deciding that it was time for them to move out. The fighting in the distance had died down and the rain had finally stopped, so Widow considered now was the best time to move. Thankfully, she had a better idea where they currently were, thanks to the destroyed Bastion's she'd come across, as well as an old newspaper she found scrunched up in the abandoned cabin.
The newspaper was written in German and using her powers of deduction, Widow guessed they may have been in the Black Forest. She remembered that Talon were planning to build some sort of base there, yet she wasn't aware that it had been completed. There was no way she could know for sure, yet the pieces all fit. It was an abandoned forest, which had old, inoperable Bastion's littered all over the area and was somewhere that spoke German. If she was right, then Eichenwalde wasn't too far away.
With that in mind, Widow gently woke Emily and told her the makeshift plan she'd come up with. They'd make their way towards Eichenwalde, avoiding fights as long as they could and hopefully find some way to contact Overwatch. If all else failed and they couldn't find anything in Eichenwalde, then they'd keep moving until they found civilisation. It was a gamble, especially since Widow could have been wrong about where they were, yet it was the best plan she had right now.
Thankfully, the task of navigating towards their destination was a lot easier thanks to Widow's thermal goggles. As well as helping them move through the forest, Torbjorn had been tinkering with them and had installed a small digital compass in the corner of her vision. It was designed to help her during missions but right now, it was helping in another way. After tracing her steps back, she took an educated guess which way to go and started walking, Emily following close by.
The journey was thankfully uneventful, with no real threats around as they made their way towards their destination. Widow was betting on the idea that Talon would have already checked Eichenwalde and moved on by the time they arrived.
As they neared the abandoned village, Widow felt a slight amount of relief that her suspicions were proven correct. They were in fact in the Black Forest. However, while from a distance it appeared that there were no Talon forces in the village, she still couldn't be sure.
Widow was now forced to stop and consider their next move. Going into the village was a risk. Talon could still be prowling around, yet their might be something she could use to contact Overwatch. Then there was Emily. Sure she could stay outside the village while Widow looked around, yet that meant leaving her alone, which was extremely risky. For that reason, it wasn't even an option for Widow.
"What's wrong?" Emily finally asked, realising that the assassin was deep in thought.
"I don't know if Talon's in there." Widow replied, doing a quick check with her goggles and finding no targets. "If they are, it might be wise to stay away, yet their could be communication equipment inside..."
Widow activated her goggles a second time, seeing if anything had changed while she debated what to do. Continuing on was still an option, yet the sooner they were rescued, the better. They'd been lucky so far, yet this luck couldn't hold out forever and wandering around the forest wouldn't help improve it.
"Do you think going in is worth the risk?" Emily asked, unsure herself.
"Maybe... I can't see anyone from here, so if Talon's inside, then there can't be that many... But if even one person reported they'd seen us..."
"We'd be dead meat." Emily said, finishing Widow's statement for her. She weighed up their options, wondering what Lena would do. Eventually, she came to a decision. "I think we should go in."
Widow turned to face Emily. "Are you sure? It'll be dangerous, especially if Talon's in there."
Emily replied with a firm nod. "Yeah, I'm sure... Besides, I have you protecting me. Lena wouldn't have trusted you if she didn't have her reasons." She concluded, trying to lighten the mood.
"Alright then..." Widow said, still unsure if this was the best idea. She reached for the pistol and placed the silencer for it on, before handing it to Emily. "You'll need this. Don't use it unless you have to and if I ask for it, you give it to me."
"Got it."
With that, the two began to head towards the village, Widow keeping her rifle ready. Unlike the pistol, it had no silencer, meaning if she was forced to use it, she'd alert anyone in the nearby area she was around. She knew stealth was key here, so she kept herself and Emily to the shadows as much as possible.
The two moved into the town slowly, Widow checking each area out carefully before they slowly moved up, heading towards the main castle. Thankfully, the town appeared to be deserted. However, their luck didn't hold up and Widow eventually laid eyes on two Talon soldiers. They had their backs to them, meaning that Widow had the element of surprise.
She signalled Emily to stop, telling her to hide in the closest building and then asked for the pistol, temporarily trading her sniper with her. With the silenced pistol in hand, Widow snuck up behind the two soldiers, making sure there was no one who could witness the act, then killed both of them with two headshots.
She quickly put the pistol in its holster and grabbed the two bodies, pulling them into the building Emily was in. Emily couldn't help but look away, as Widow dragged the bodies into the room she was in. Once she was finished, Widow stepped back over to Emily and swapped weapons with her, before motioning for her to follow once again.
Even without seeing them, Widow knew that there were more Talon forces in the town. It would be extremely lucky if Talon only left two soldiers to guard the entire town and she felt like all their luck had been used up.
As they got closer to the castle, Widow was once again proven right, as several soldiers stood in their way, each patrolling in a different direction. On top of that, there was a small squad which appeared to be checking buildings. They were clearly looking for something and Widow didn't need to watch them to know they were looking for them.
Now Widow looked to the rooftops, seeing an opportunity to sneak by unnoticed. Talon had nobody on the roofs, meaning she could grapple both her and Emily up and then crawl across out of sight. Just before she told Emily the plan, it became obsolete, as a Talon dropship roared over them. It would be too risky to use the rooftops now.
As she tried to formulate another plan of action, the Talon troops were given orders over their radios. They all sprung to life, running off towards the castle and away from Widow and Emily.
"Where are they going?" Emily asked, keeping her voice down.
"I don't know... but it can't be good. It never is."
Once the area ahead was clear, the two women moved up again, Widow slowly leading the way and keeping an eye out for anyone with her thermal goggles. The area fell extremely quiet and Widow began to wonder if the Talon forces had just set a trap. However, when she began hearing gunfire, she realised that someone else must be here.
Before Widow could decide what to do with this information though, she heard an aircraft approaching in the distance. She turned around and saw a Talon dropship, heading straight towards them. They didn't have enough time to get to cover and the dropship flew straight over them.
"Did they see us?" Emily asked, worry clear in her voice.
Widow didn't answer, instead watching what the dropship did. It flew a little further, decreasing its speed before it began to land, turning as it did so that the door was facing them. However, it aborted its landing seconds later and the doors opened, revealing a Talon sniper, that was aiming straight towards them.
"Merde."
Widow instinctively kicked Emily backwards, hopefully to safety and activated her sniper, aiming straight up at the dropship. Her scope quickly found its target and she fired, scoring a perfect headshot. However, Widow screamed out in pain as soon as she fired, falling onto one knee. The downed sniper didn't have time to line up their shot, so they'd fired at the first thing they could, which just so happened to be Widow's right leg.
Emily ran over to Widow, kneeling down next to her. "Oh my god, are you okay?"
"Oui..." Widow began, slowly standing back up. "I'm perfectly... AH!"
Widow was quickly back on the floor, sitting herself down and holding her right leg, a small amount of blood appearing on her hand. She wasn't able to put any pressure on her leg, meaning she couldn't walk. She looked at the gunshot wound and realised that the bullet had gone straight through her leg. She thanked the fact she had a slower heartbeat, as it meant she wouldn't bleed to death anytime soon. However, she knew that it would need medical attention in the very near future.
"Okay... not so good." Widow finally admitted, as she breathed through the pain. She'd been shot before, though usually she had some basic medical supplies supplied by Talon with her, which allowed her to heal up the injuries or fight through any pain she was suffering. This time, she had no such luxury.
As she composed herself, a couple of Talon soldiers ran around the corner, aiming at the two women. Thankfully, Widow was still able to shoot and reacted with lighting fast speed. The two soldiers were dead in seconds, with another two perfect headshots.
"You'll have to help me walk." Widow told Emily, wrapping her left arm around her. They stood up, Widow using Emily to take pressure off her right leg. She held up her rifle using her other hand, still able to use the SMG function.
"Which way?" Emily asked, looking around the area in panic.
"That way." Widow replied, pointing with her rifle. "Hopefully we'll find some medical supplies that I can use."
The two women moved as quick as they could, Widow trying her best to keep her weight off her wounded leg. As they headed the way Widow pointed, they came face to face with two Talon soldiers. Even with an arm around Emily, Widow was still able to raise her weapon, firing the SMG and taking down the two soldiers.
They continued on their current path, until Widow directed Emily into an open building. When they stepped inside, they realised it was an old tavern, which had seen far better days. Widow briefly looked behind the bar, leaning against the counter as she searched for a first aid kit. After coming up empty handed, Widow heard people talking from outside. She quickly walked over to Emily and put her arm back around her, pointing towards the back of the room.
"Put me down over there."
Emily rushed to the back of the tavern, placing Widow down in a spot where she could watch all the possible ways in. Emily took cover behind her, readying the pistol for the fight she suspected was coming.
"Don't use that pistol unless you have to." Widow said, as she activated her thermal goggles, waiting for the incoming Talon forces to enter the tavern.
Overwatch dropship- Five minutes earlier
The dropship sped towards Eichenwalde, the pilot very much aware how time was agaisnt them. The old Blackwatch dropship had recently been repainted, removing any mention of the old black ops team. It was a part of Overwatch that the agents and soldiers alike wanted to forget.
Reinhardt had considered his choices carefully before selecting his team. Along with Sombra and the Bastion, he'd picked Brigitte, McCree and Baptiste, believing them to be the best choices here.
Inside the dropship, Reinhardt and Brigitte were at the front of the ship, talking about the mission and creating a plan in case Talon were at Eichenwalde. McCree was sat on the right side smoking a cigar, while the Bastion was sat at the back, not doing much except watch Sombra.
Sombra was pacing back and forth in the middle of the dropship, nervous about the mission. Baptiste was sat on the left of the ship, watching her pace. After seeing Sombra open her computer for the seventh time since they'd set off, he reached for his weapon and fired a healing grenade at her, grabbing her attention.
"Seriously, you're going to fall through the ship if you keep pacing like that."
"He has a point, you really need to calm down. If they're at Eichenwalde, then we'll find them." McCree added.
Sombra sighed and closed down her computer, seeing no new information. She slowly walked over and sat next to Baptiste, resting her head against the cold metal behind her.
"Hey, who's shooting up my dropship?"
"It was only a healing grenade, nothing to worry about." McCree told the pilot, reassuring her.
McCree just so happened to know this pilot. It was the same pilot who'd picked up the Blackwatck team in Rialto, after all hell broke lose. While she may not have anything on Tracer when it came to piloting, he knew they were in good hands.
"You're meant to wait until we enter the war zone before you start shooting. Otherwise it's difficult to explain why there's gunshots inside." The pilot replied, clearly joking around.
"We're not flying into a war zone."
"I was told that the last time. How many Talon soldiers ended up going after you again? Anyway, you all better get ready, we're approaching the landing... CRAP, HOLD ON!"
The dropship suddenly turned left, throwing everyone to the one side of the ship, apart from the Bastion, who remained in it's sitting position while it slid slightly towards the left. McCree stood up, after being thrown out of his sitting position and walked to the front of the dropship, banging against the door to the cockpit.
"What the hell was that?"
"Someone fired a rocket at us. I managed to lose it but Talon clearly knows we're here."
"There goes our element of surprise." Reinhardt mumbled, as he picked up his hammer and readied for a fight.
"I'm going to set you down in front of the castle, prepare for landing."
The agents all stood up, readying their weapons as the dropship quickly landed. The doors opened and everyone ran out, Reinhardt activating his barrier as it immediately began taking fire from a small squad of Talon grunts. The Bastion ran behind it and transformed into its turret configuration, gunning down the small squad before changing targets for another approaching squad.
Once the dropship was empty, the pilot took off, flying away from the area.
"I'll try to find a place to set down and wait for your signal. Don't take too long, if I can't do that I'll have to keep flying around and I don't have the fuel to keep that up."
"Understood. Brigitte, take the Bastion and check the lower levels of the town. Sombra, check inside the castle, then regroup on me. Baptiste, McCree and I will push forward and distract any Talon forces that arrive."
Everyone acknowledged the command, before splitting up. Sombra went invisible and ran inside the castle, while Brigitte led the Bastion to the left, intending to bypass the Talon forces through the battlements and head to the lower parts of the town.
Reinhardt, McCree and Baptiste pushed forward, as three Talon dropships flew into view. They stopped and unloaded troops on the path in front of them, grouping up and firing at Rein's barrier. A fourth dropship appeared from further away and went to land, yet it aborted and turned away from the team. Moments later, two sniper shots were heard, before the dropship doors closed, the aircraft lowering to the ground and unloading whoever was left onboard.
"What was that?" Sombra asked, hearing the shot from inside the castle.
"Sniper shots, two of them." McCree answered, as he fired his revolver at the Talon soldiers in front.
"Sombra, is the castle clear?" Reinhardt asked, all but certain who one of the snipers were.
"I can't see anyone in here."
"Then they're in the lower town. Get down there and try to find them."
Sombra didn't need to be told twice, remaining invisible and sprinting out of the castle. She took the same route Brigitte and Bastion took, stopping to take out a few Talon troopers that were attempting to flank behind the team. Once the troopers were down, she activated her cloak once more and continued on, quickly finding Brigitte and Bastion. Brigitte had her barrier raised, taking a few shots from a Talon squad while the Bastion fired at back in its sentry configuration.
Once the enemy squad was down, Brigitte lowered her shield, allowing it to recharge and the Bastion reloaded its weapon. Sombra made herself visible again and ran over to them, patting the Bastion on the arm as she passed it.
"Any idea where they are?"
Before Brigitte could answer, two more dropships appeared, deploying two squads of troopers each. The closest two began attacking the small team, while the other two continued lower into the town, where Brigitte knew the old tavern was.
Brigitte raised her now recharged barrier up, protecting Sombra from the incoming attack while she fired back. The Bastion meanwhile transformed into its tank configuration, the Talon soldiers panicking soon after. They could do little else before an entire squad was eliminated, taken out by a single shot from the tank cannon.
The remaining squad began to retreat, trying to get away from the Bastion. The soldiers were not able to run far before the Bastion finished them off. With the squads neutralised, the Bastion stopped, scanning the immediate area before it continued forward, heading towards the tavern while remaining in its tank configuration. As it vanished around the corner, Brigitte and Sombra didn't wait around, giving chase a few moments later.
When they turned around the corner, they saw the Bastion engaging a number of Talon soldiers, while others were moving inside the tavern. The soldiers were dug in, yet the Bastion was making quick work of them, even when two more dropships arrived to reinforce them.
Sombra and Brigitte stayed behind a building, using it as cover while the Bastion continued to wreck havoc on the Talon forces. Eventually, the Bastion began moving forward again, still in its Tank configuration as it headed inside the tavern. There were still some Talon soldiers outside and Brigitte moved out of cover, raising her barrier up again while Sombra fired her weapon behind it.
"The Bastion's clearly found something in there." Brigitte said, as the few remaining troopers fell. "Get in there. I can handle these."
Meanwhile, several minutes earlier, Widow had her scope aimed at the main entrance of the tavern, firing when any Talon soldiers appeared from around the corner. Her thermal goggles made the task much easier, allowing her to see what the enemy soldiers were doing.
However, she was concerned about the amount of ammo she had left. As another two troopers entered from either side of the doorway, each going down within a second of each other, Widow reloaded her weapon. She was down to four magazines now, nowhere near enough to fight off Talon forever.
Once her weapon was loaded up, she looked back to the door, seeing Talon troopers grouping up at the entrance. A couple also headed to the door on the left and it was obviously the troopers where intending to attack from two angles.
The other troopers that she'd killed were only small teams. This time, it appeared to be at least two squads of soldiers. She knew this would be a difficult fight on her own.
"Emily, I need your help. Two Talon soldiers through the left door that I can't take down. You need to do it."
Emily looked at the door, before reluctantly aiming the pistol up and acknowledging Widow.
"Alright... I... I can do that."
Widow didn't like asking Emily to do this. She was no soldier and it wasn't hard to see she was terrified. Yet there was little other choice. She watched as the Talon troopers moved into position, before they began moving for the doors.
"Here they come."
The first trooper entered, being gunned down the moment his head was in view. Another went down shortly after, not able to react to the sniper in time. The rest of the squad hesitated, which allowed Widow to move her scope and fire at one of the targets entering from the left. However, she didn't have enough time to take down the other, watching as the Soldier raised his weapon, ready to fire.
The shot never came though, as several bullets from a pistol impacted with the soldier. He stayed standing for a second, before falling backwards. Emily just stared at the fallen soldier, still pointing the pistol at the doorway as the weight of what she just did hit her.
"Oh my god... I just..."
"It's them or us."
Emily moved herself back into cover, her hands shaking as she reloaded the pistol. "Yeah... I know."
Widow had her eyes on the doorway the whole time, watching to see what the squad did. One reached for something on his belt, arming it before throwing it inside the room. Widow deactivated her goggles, realising that it was a flashbang.
"Take cover!"
Widow was left blinded, with no idea where the enemy was. So, she did the only thing she could. She fired blindly across the room, hoping that she hit something. The rifle quickly ran out of ammo and the next thing Widow felt was the weapon being kicked out of her hands before a kick to her face followed it.
Widow groaned, as she regained her vision and hearing. There were three Talon soldiers above her, a fourth lying on the floor, after taking several shots from Widow's blind fire. The one trooper aimed a pistol at Widow's head, while the other two aimed at where Emily was hiding.
"We know you're there. You have no where to go, come out or we kill her."
Emily didn't move and the Talon soldiers grew impatient. The one aiming at Widow placed his foot against her gunshot wound, causing her to hiss out in pain. She did her best to hide the pain, as the soldier put more force against the wound.
Before the Talon troopers could speak to Emily again, they heard explosions and screams from outside. One headed towards the door, after being told to go investigate, only to be killed moments later. After a large explosion, a small tank rolled into the tavern, stopping as it saw the soldier aiming at Widow. The other quickly aimed at the new hostile, knowing full well it was the Bastion that they'd heard was tearing through their forces.
"Don't move! Move and I kill her!"
The Bastion analysed the situation in front of it, trying to work out what to do. It couldn't fire at either of the troopers, otherwise Widow would end up dead.
Thankfully, it gave Emily a chance to make a move, aiming at the trooper who currently held Widow hostage. She did her best to line up her shot, her hands still shaking and then fired. The soldier took a couple of rounds in his back, causing him to stumble forward. It was enough to allow Widow to roll to the side, getting herself out of harms way and giving the Bastion the opportunity it needed.
The tank cannon moved to the other trooper, who was turning to attack Emily and fired, hitting the ground next to him. Splinters of wood filled the room, which Emily managed to avoid by taking cover again.
The first soldier wasn't dead though, turning back around to kill Widow. However, he never got the chance, as Sombra appeared behind him, her weapon aimed straight at him. Once the last soldier was dealt with, the Bastion transformed back into its sentry mode, running into the tavern and sitting back down in its turret configuration, watching the doors.
"It's safe to come out Emily." Widow said, as she sat herself up and then checked her wounded leg. The bleeding hadn't stopped and her outfit around the wound was now covered in blood. Sombra turned around, seeing Widow's injury and was instantly next to her. Brigitte walked in a few moments later, heading over to Emily, who'd stood up from her hiding place.
"That looks bad." Sombra said, as Widow removed her hand from the wounded area, covered in blood.
"I won't bleed out anytime soon, but it needs medical attention." Widow paused for a second, before she smiled at Sombra. "It's good to see you."
"Miss me then?" Sombra joked, trying to lighten the mood.
"Maybe a little."
As the two women smiled at each other, Brigitte walked over, kneeling down next to Widow and pulled out a red cloth. Before she did anything, she reluctantly asked Widow a question.
"Where's Lena?"
Widow lowered her head, seeing Emily walk over to the group. "Her accelerator was damaged..."
Nothing more needed to be said. Brigitte nodded her head, before returning to Widow's leg.
"I'm going to wrap this up to slow down the bleeding."
Brigitte gently raised up Widow's leg, placing the cloth around the wound before tightening it up. Widow hissed out in pain again, doing her best at keeping quiet. Once the makeshift bandage was in place, Brigitte stood and activated her commlink.
"Reinhardt, we found Amelie and Emily."
"Excellent work! What about Lena?"
"...Her accelerator was damaged..."
"Understood." Reinhardt knew what that meant. Lena wasn't here, yet she was out of harms way. The most important thing now was to get Widow and Emily to safety.
"Amelie's been hit, we need medical support." Brigitte now reported, hoping that the rest of the team could make their way to them. However, this idea was shot down instantly.
"We can't reach you. Several Talon dropships just dropped off reinforcements in front of us and they seemed determined not to let us get to you."
"Okay, what's the plan?" Brigitte asked, assuming Reinhardt had one.
"I'll call for evac and tell it to go to the secondary landing zone. Make your way there."
"Got it." Brig now turned to the rest of the team. "Alright, we need to move. Amelie, any chance you can walk on that wound?"
"Non."
"In which case, the Bastion will take point, while I'll carry you."
"No." Widow interrupted. "You need to protect Emily. Sombra can protect me."
Sombra nodded at Brigitte. "Yeah, I can do that, don't worry."
"Okay, I'll cover Emily with my shield, while Sombra keeps Amelie safe. We'll follow behind the Bastion as it clears the way to the LZ. Everyone got that?"
Everyone in the tavern nodded, including the Bastion, which made a nodding motion in its turret form.
"Good. Let's move out."
The Bastion transformed into sentry form, leading the way out of the tavern. Brigitte wasn't too far behind, keeping herself close to Emily, ready to raise her barrier to protect her. Sombra stood up, picking up Widow's rifle before holding her hand out for her. She helped Widow to her feet and then made sure she could keep her weight off her wounded leg.
The team moved through the town slowly, Sombra doing her best to help Widow walk. They were met with very little resistance, as the majority of the Talon forces were occupied with Reinhardt's team. Brigitte kept her shield raised over Emily, protecting her from the small amount of fire that came their way. The majority of the firepower was directed at the Bastion, which made short work of the small amount of resistance they encountered.
They eventually reached the battlements of the castle, which Reinhardt's team were currently on top of. Brigitte kept her barrier raised as the Emily, Sombra and Widow walked from cover to cover. The Bastion meanwhile kept its self repair active, repairing any damage it took. The team quickly made their way to the top of the battlements, grouping up with the rest of the squad.
Once they were at the LZ, Sombra placed Widow down, letting Baptiste look over her wound. He quickly healed up the damage using his healing grenades and Widow gently stood up, now able to walk again.
"Merci."
"Angela will need to check it over properly once we're back at base, but it'll do for now."
With the whole team now present, Reinhardt contacted the dropship pilot.
"How long until you're here?"
"The whole area's a warzone, Talon ships are everywhere and the German military's realised something's going on. I'm doing my best to keep out of their way but it means it'll take a little longer to get to you... Heads up, more are on their way."
"Copy that. Amelie, stay close to Emily and keep her covered. Everyone else, defensive positions!"
The team spread out over the top of the battlements, watching every possible way up to them. Reinhardt and the Bastion walked up to the edge of the building, the Bastion setting up in its turret form while Reinhardt protected it with his barrier. McCree watched the way up from inside the building, while Baptiste watched the opposite way behind him. Brigitte and Sombra watched the top of the building, in case any Talon soldiers attempted to flank behind them. Widow meanwhile knelt down next to Emily, behind a concrete wall, keeping what little ammo she had left in case she needed it.
A few moments later, three Talon dropships roared into view, unloading several squads of soldiers on the ground level. The Bastion focused fire on the closest ship, firing as it began to fly away. It didn't take long before the dropship began to fall, crashing down and exploding outside of the town.
The Bastion then shifted targets, firing at the soldiers below and taking out as many enemies as it could. The ones which managed to get out of sight were then met with either McCree or Baptiste. Some troopers did attempt to flank around but Brigitte and Sombra stood in their way. Brigitte kept her shield raised, allowing Sombra to gun down the enemy troopers with ease.
The Talon troopers spent some time pinned down by the Overwatch agents, simply unable to get past them no matter which way they went. They attempted to group up under the doorway McCree was protecting, a task made difficult thanks to the Bastion cutting down any trooper it saw. Once they had a reasonably sized force, they pushed forward, trying to overwhelm McCree. However, he rolled backwards out of the line of fire, while Reinhardt and Brigitte moved to assist him.
One hammer down later and half of the Talon force was on the ground, Reinhardt charging in shortly after. Brigitte followed behind him and the two quickly finished off any soldiers that tried to stand their ground.
The two now moved back into their original positions, Baptiste firing a couple of healing grenades while Brigitte quickly checked over Reinhardt's armour, happy to see it wasn't damaged. Once back in position, McCree thought of something.
"Hey Reinhardt, didn't Morrison say the German army was all over this area?" He said, remembering the brief Reinhardt had given just before the mission.
"He did. Why?"
"With all this fighting going on, someone should've noticed. So, where the hell are they?"
Before Reinhardt could come up with a good answer, another three dropships appeared, unloading more squads of soldiers as well as a Talon heavy, which they heard get dropped in behind them.
Thankfully, they didn't have to deal with it, as the Overwatch dropship flew in over the castle. It lowered down towards the squad and landed on top of the battlement, the pilot immediately opening the doors.
"Everyone, get aboard!"
"You heard her! Everyone inside!"
Widow and Emily were the first on board, followed by Brigitte and Sombra. McCree and Baptiste were next, firing at a few Talon soldiers which were too close before boarding. Reinhardt and the Bastion were the last aboard, the Bastion standing from its position and the two ran over to the dropship.
"Everyone's here, go!"
Reinhardt raised his barrier, stopping any bullets from hitting the occupants as the dropship began to take off. The doors closed and the pilot pushed the engines to maximum power.
"Hold on!"
The dropship roared to life, escaping the range of the enemy soldiers before they could cause any significant damage. Two Talon dropships attempted to give chase but they were not able to keep up. After a few tense minutes, the dropship was far out of reach.
"We're clear."
"Good work." Reinhardt said to the pilot, before he activated his radio, contacting Morrison at Gibraltar. As he did this, the occupants all relaxed. McCree and Baptiste sat down, McCree pulling out a new cigar and offering it to Baptiste, who declined the offer. Brigitte stayed next to Reinhardt, intending to speak to him after he finished his conversation with Morrison. Meanwhile, the Bastion sat itself down at the back of the dropship, minding its own business.
As the dropship now turned and made its way towards Gibraltar, Sombra walked over to Widow, sitting herself down and joining both her and Emily, who was staring at the door of the dropship, still holding the pistol. Widow had noticed this and gently tapped Emily on her arm, shaking her out of the trance she was in.
"It's okay... We're safe now."
It took a few moments for the words to sink in, before Emily broke down in tears and hugged Widow. Nothing was said between them, as Widow took the pistol from Emily and passed it over to Sombra. She then wrapped her arms around Emily, comforting her as she let out what felt like a years worth of tears.
"Thank you..." Emily managed to say, as she continued to hug Widow.
"You're welcome."
The dropship was relatively quiet for the rest of the journey, no one sure what to say. Eventually, the lack of sleep caught up to Emily and she found herself resting her head on Widow's shoulder, closing her eyes and falling into a deep sleep.
"Hey Amelie." McCree quickly said, making sure he didn't wake Emily. "Nice work."
"Thank you... If only I could have got Lena out too."
"Don't worry, we'll get her back. Winston'll know what to do."
Widow just slowly nodded, making sure she didn't wake up Emily. She remained sitting where she was, letting Emily sleep as the rest of the team began quietly talking to themselves. As she sat there, she felt Sombra place a hand on hers.
"Are you okay?"
Widow couldn't help but smile. "Oui. I'm okay Sombra. However, I need to speak with Morrison when we get back."
"Why? Can't it wait?"
"Non... Gabriel went rogue Sombra. He went rogue to get me out." Widow whispered the last part, making sure no one overheard her.
"What? Seriously?"
"Oui... He's no longer working for Talon."
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Sombra asked, remembering that she wasn't on the best of terms with Reaper right now.
"Honestly..? I don't know."