Ashes To Ashes
Watchpoint Gibraltar- Three days later
For the next three days, Overwatch continued to build up its forces, the revocation of the Petras Act driving further recruitment. This, along with the forces already at Gibraltar, meant Overwatch now had a reasonably sized force, one that Morrison was satisfied could effectively combat Talon, along with any other threats that revealed themselves.
Due to the amount of people they now had, Morrison was beginning to think they'd need another base. Winston had done a number of improvements to Gibraltar, so they could make do with only the one base for now. However, they were starting to be noticed and Morrison considered that they needed a fall back location, just in case.
Emily had also begun her training, Widow being the first agent to help out, while Ana supervised, making sure everything was done properly. Widow decided to start with pistol training, knowing that Emily already had a basic understanding of them and then go from there. With nothing else to do, Lena had been by her side, helping her get to grips with everything she was being taught.
Today started like any normal day, with the agents starting to go about their usual routines. However, this was all thrown up into the air when Morrison called a surprise meeting in the lab, making it clear that he wanted all the agents present. Thankfully, the time Morrison had specified gave everyone the chance to eat breakfast beforehand, though they could do little else.
As the time drew near, the lab began to fill up, Winston being the first one there for obvious reasons. The next group to arrive were Reinhardt, Brigitte and Torbjorn, with the Bastion following and sitting at the back of the lab. Shortly afterwards, McCree strolled in, lighting a cigar and placing it in his mouth before leaning against the nearby holotable. Zarya was behind him, though she decided to exercise at the side of the lab, keeping her distance from the Bastion.
"Have you heard the rumour going round the base?" McCree said to the other agents, puffing out a cloud of smoke as he did so.
"I'm assuming you're talking about the one involving Amelie and Sombra?" Reinhardt replied, hearing about it not too long ago.
"That's the one. What you make of it?"
"I'm starting to think there's merit to it. The two are definitely close." Reinhardt's answer gained a nod from Brigitte, while Torb simply paid it no mind, preferring not to get involved with rumours and gossip.
"Reinhardt, there's no way that rumour's true." McCree commented, as a few more agents, this time Genji, along with Hanzo and Zenyatta, entered the lab.
"Are you certain about that Jesse?" Genji asked, overhearing his comment as he entered. "You've been wrong before."
"No, I'm fairly certain about this one." McCree answered, another cloud of smoke being puffed out as he spoke.
"Certain about what?"
McCree turned to look at the door, seeing another group of agents entering. This time, it was Lena, along with Angela and Fareeha. Hana and Lucio were not far behind them, not paying the conversation much notice.
"You heard about that rumour going round the base?" McCree asked Lena, already knowing the answer.
"Um... nope, can't say I have."
That got McCree's attention. He leaned up and looked straight towards Lena. "You see, now I'm startin to suspect somethin. You're the one person who knows about any rumour going around about any agent. There's no way you don't know."
Lena simply shook her head, her expression blank. "Nope, no idea what you're on about."
Just then, Widow entered the lab, Sombra and Baptiste not far behind, both in deep conversation.
"Perhaps Amelie could shed some light on this matter." Reinhardt said, gaining the attention of Widow in the process.
"On what matter exactly?"
"There's a rumour going round the base." McCree began to explain. "Some of the soldier's are sayin they saw you and Sombra... how do I put this..? In close proximity..."
Widow raised an eyebrow at McCree, having an idea what he meant but not showing it. Lena on the other hand, decided to be more direct, playing along while getting straight to the point.
"They say they saw you two snogging."
McCree pointed his finger at Lena. "I thought you said you didn't know anythin about it?"
Lena simply giggled. "Not really my place to say anything about it."
Lena's response did in fact gain some agents attention, most notably Reinhardt and Torb, who both suspected a hidden meaning to those words. McCree on the other hand simply shook his head, before getting back to his original point.
"Perhaps you could enlighten us. Is there's any truth to this rumour?"
"What rumour's this then?" Sombra asked, walking over after finishing her conversation with Baptiste.
"Oh, I do believe he means this one." Widow replied, grabbing ahold of Sombra and pulling her into a kiss.
The room was silent for a few moments, the initial shock passing before Reinhardt cheered. A few agents clapped and Lena giggled again, grinning at the two women as they separated.
"Does that answer your question Jesse?"
Widow smiled at McCree, who was stunned into silence. It took him a few moments before he managed to shake himself back into reality.
"I'd say it did." He then turned to Lena. "You knew about this, didn't you?"
"Like I said. Wasn't my place to say."
"I'm betting your glad you didn't put money on this Jesse." Reinhardt added, a laugh following as McCree just shook his head again. "In any case, I'm happy for you two."
"Indeed." Zenyatta commented, a happy tone of voice very clear. "It is truly wonderful to see love blossom."
"We must toast the occasion later today."
Widow found herself chuckling at the comment, happy that the rest of the agents seemed to support the relationship. She gently wrapped an arm around Sombra, who cuddled closer to her. "Looking forward to it."
The agents congratulated the two, except for Zarya, which didn't really surprise anyone, before everyone went back to their own conversations. At this point, Baptiste walked over to Widow and Sombra, gently tapping the hackers shoulder to gain her attention.
"It's about time you found someone." He said to Sombra, smiling as he did so. "I never really believed it when you said you preferred being alone."
Sombra found herself instinctively smiling, hugging closer to Widow ever so slightly, a move that didn't go unnoticed by her. "Yeah well, I'm not the same person I was back then... and I found someone who changed me for the better."
For Sombra, those words couldn't be more true. Before all his, she was selfish, cocky and frankly, only interested in anything that could further her own goals. Now though, she had someone who cared about her, someone who she'd grown close to. She was honestly surprised at how much her life had changed in such a small amount of time.
"Well, you do seem a lot happier then you were back at Talon." Baptiste then turned to Widow. "Make sure you look after her."
Widow couldn't help but chuckle once again. "In all honesty, I think she looks after me."
Sombra gently kissed Widow's cheek, overhearing a quiet "aww" from Lena. "What about you?" She asked Baptiste. "Do you have anyone?"
"Would have thought you'd already know that... but no. Surprisingly, having to constantly move around to avoid Talon makes dating kinda difficult." Baptiste lightheartedly replied.
"I can imagine it does. You'll find the right one. Just give it time."
Just then, Morrison entered the lab, Ana less than a few steps behind him. Winston walked down from the upper level and briefly spoke to the strike commander, before Morrison addressed the other agents in the room.
"Everyone form up around the holotable."
The agents quickly did so, dropping whatever conversations they were in the middle of to circle the table in question, leaving a gap so Morrison could walk over and lean against it.
"Alright, listen up. Winston and I have some intel regarding Talon and Null Sector."
"Null Sector?" McCree said. "Haven't heard from them in a while."
"They've been keeping a low profile." Morrison explained, as Athena brought up an image of Europe on the holotable. "Winston tells me that Echo's been keeping an eye on them and she's reported that they've been trying to move across Europe, discreetly heading east across the continent. However, they recently split up and two groups are now heading towards Switzerland and Spain."
"How have they managed to stay undetected?" McCree asked. "After what they pulled in Paris, it shouldn't be that easy to move around."
"It hasn't been and the French authorities took down a number of Null Sector Omnics that were attempting to leave the country. However, there's only much they can do and let's be honest, it's very likely they have Omnics that are sympathetic to their cause."
"They're rebuilding." Torbjorn said, matter of factly. "Otherwise, they'd have attacked again by now."
"Exactly. We need to have strike teams ready to move when the time comes. Reinhardt, I'm thinking the crusaders would be very effective against them."
"Not to worry, the crusaders are more than ready for a fight."
"Good to hear. Get the word out to the troopers too. They'll likely be the ones working alongside them."
"Since we mentioned Echo, any news about Sojourn?" Lena asked. "Haven't heard a thing from her since she left to find other ex-Overwatch members."
"Actually yes." Winston began, briefly taking over from Morrison. "So that everyone is up to speed, Sojourn was originally looking for other ex-Overwatch agents and wanted to try and convince them to help. However, that changed when she found out that some were feeding Talon information prior to Overwatch's collapse."
"Since then, Sojourn's been investigating this, trying to find out what exactly happened and who betrayed us." Morrison said, continuing from where Winston left off. "That was until a few days ago, when pretty much all her leads turned up dead."
There was a short silence in the room, McCree being the one to break it.
"Talon's clearing house. Taking out any potential lose ends."
"Exactly. Ever since Reyes went rogue, Talon's become more paranoid. Sojourn hasn't been able to find out much but she did manage to intercept one of their teams. Turns out Talon has a list of people that they're worried might try changing sides or even join Reaper. So, they've been taking them out."
"Any idea who these people are?" Fareeha asked. "If they realise that Talon's about to kill them and we keep them safe, they might be willing to give us information on them."
"Unfortunately no. As I said, most, if not all of Sojourn's leads are now dead. On top of that, Talon's being extremely cautious with the information they give their strike teams regarding this matter. The team Sojourn managed to intercept had just killed one of her sources and were about to head for their next target when she took them down. All they had were a set of coordinates, which pointed straight towards the hideout of the Deadlock gang."
"Deadlock? Why on earth would they think the Deadlock gang is a threat?" Torbjorn asked, not seeing much logic in this move.
"Because they sent Reaper to negotiate with them... alone." Sombra replied, realising what was happening. "When me and McCree went to their hideout to try and find intel, Reaper was there, by himself. Talon's worried that he's made a deal with them, so they're going to get rid of them."
"Is it possible that Reyes made a deal with them?" Genji asked.
"No chance." McCree answered. "Ashe doesn't work like that. She works on gettin paid and there's no way Reyes could out bid Talon. They're just caught up in the middle of all this."
The cowboy paused, thinking for a moment before turning to Morrison.
"What we plannin on doing about it?"
"Nothing."
"Excuse me?"
"Deadlock don't know about the inner workings of Talon and they certainly won't work with us. So why bother? Talon weaken themselves and there's one less criminal gang to deal with."
McCree wanted to argue, say that they should go and try to stop a massacre happening. He knew his former gang could put up a fight but against Talon, whose agents had military level training and the element of surprise... it was obvious what was going to happen. Instead, he just remained quiet, keeping his thoughts to himself.
"That brings us to the third item. Not too long ago, we received a data package that contained information regarding suspicious transactions between suspected Talon bank accounts. Athena's been looking over it and she's found something of interest. Athena."
"I have managed to identify a recent transaction to an account inconsistent with Talon's other accounts." Athena explained, showing the data on the holotable. "Upon further investigation, I have managed to identify that it is a privately owned account, registered to the commanding officer of MEKA, Captain Myung."
"What?" DVa almost shouted out, in complete disbelief at what she just heard. "You must have made a mistake. That can't be right."
"I'm afraid I have not miss Song. The account is in her name and money was deposited to it shortly after Lena and Amelie infiltrated the MEKA facility."
"I knew something wasn't right." Widow said, remembering the mission all too well. "It was too easy to get that far into the base, even for me."
"Actually, now that I think about it, Amelie isn't wrong." Lena admitted. "Security was a bit lacklustre and when we were escaping, they didn't really try to stop us."
"You were using me as a human shield." DVa replied, trying her best to defend Myung.
"Myung is military and she would have been very aware that letting any intel fall into Talon's hands was unacceptable. So why did she let Amelie and Lena get away so easily?" Morrison asked, seeing how DVa was trying to rationalise Myung's actions.
"She didn't let them go. We couldn't catch up to them..."
"Okay, then explain why Talon paid a large amount of money into a bank account in her name."
"Well... um... maybe the account isn't hers and it's fake..." Hana stuttered, trying to think of an explanation to all this. Unfortunately, Athena shut this idea down seconds later.
"I have already verified the legitimacy of this account. It was created by Myung herself a week before the incident at MEKA. The deposited money can be traced back to accounts that I've identified as Talon front accounts."
Hana wanted to say something, say anything that explained all of this. In the end, she sighed, still not able to believe what she was hearing.
"She can't be Talon... There's no way she is."
"How can you be so certain?" Hanzo asked, his arms folded as he analysed the information in front of him.
"Because..." Hana let out another breath. "Because Myung was the one who recommended I was sent here."
Silence filled the room again, the agents left confused by this revelation. It was Hana herself who broke it, knowing she needed to explain herself.
"Back before I joined, Myung approached me and asked my opinion of Overwatch. I was honest with her, said that I thought you were doing the right thing and that people were wrong about you. Then she asked me if I was given the chance, would I help Overwatch. I told her yes, I would. A few days later, I was given a secret assignment that let me join up with Overwatch, while giving me access to any resources MEKA had at their disposal."
"So the rest of your squad. They're here officially, aren't they?"
"Yes they are. MEKA knows they're here and they allowed us to bring our meka's here."
"Be honest with me Song." Morrison now sternly said. "Have you told MEKA anything about us?"
"No, nothing. It's the opposite actually. They didn't want me to tell them a thing about how Overwatch works but wanted me to pass on any intel they had to you."
"Interesting..." Morrison trailed off for a moment, thinking over this development. "I'm fairly certain that the intel here was provided by the UK... So it seems like countries are willing to support us, just not officially."
"That's something at least." Torb added, before Morrison began speaking once again.
"We need to look into this. While Myung may not be Talon, the evidence suggests that she's been compromised at the very least. Overwatch can't just go marching in, so we have to send at least one of the MEKA pilots."
"I want to lead this op." Hana quickly announced. "This is a personal matter, not just to me but the other pilots too."
"Very well. DVa, you're to find out if Myung has been compromised and take whatever action you see fit. If you need some extra help, then take any of the other pilots."
"Yes sir."
"Sombra, we need to know what Myung's been up to recently. Any chance you can find that out?"
"Easily." The hacker confidently replied, already opening her computer.
"Good. I want you supporting DVa during this op, go with her to Busan if you need to. Any questions?"
The room was silent.
"In that case, dismissed."
The agents all began to disperse, some heading off in small groups, while others split up and went their separate ways. One such person was McCree, who remained unusually quiet as he left the lab, not stopping to speak to anyone beforehand.
He managed to walk quite some distance, discarding his cigar as he almost reached the hanger. However, just before he reached it, someone stopped him, gently placing their hand in his shoulder. Even before they spoke, McCree knew who it was, their metallic hand giving them away.
"Jesse..."
"Don't bother tryin Genji." McCree said, turning to face the ninja. He was surprised to also see Hanzo, walking up and stopping behind Genji. "Despite everythin, I cant just leave Ashe to die. I have to go and you ain't gonna convince me otherwise."
"I wasn't going to try. However, we believe that you might need some help."
McCree raised an eyebrow, looking up at Hanzo, who nodded in agreement with Genji.
"Alright. If you wanna help, them you're welcome to come along."
"Count me in too."
The three turned to see Baptiste, who stepped over to the group and folded his arms. McCree could understand Genji's position. Hell, he could understand why Hanzo wanted to help. Baptiste on the other hand was very unexpected.
"No disrespect but why do you wanna help? You don't know me all too well..."
"I can tell this Ashe is important to you and I've had to fight against people I used to call friends. So I understand your position... and frankly, if Talon gets to her first, you'll need a medic."
McCree thought for a second, before shrugging his shoulders. "Don't see no harm in it I suppose."
"We will also need a pilot." Hanzo added. "Unless one of you knows how to fly a dropship. Perhaps Tracer..?"
"Best not. Lena hasn't been cleared for active duty yet and Angela might kill us if we take her along. However, I know someone who'll help out. Meet me at the landing pad in fifteen."
McCree turned and quickly headed inside the hanger, taking no notice of the group of Meka pilots, currently working on their mecks. Instead, he headed straight towards one of the dropships, the same one that took him, along with his team at the time, to Eichenwalde. Inside the aircraft was the very person he needed to speak to.
"McCree. Nice to see you again." The pilot said, when she noticed the cowboy enter the aircraft. "For some reason, I'm guessing this isn't a social call."
"Not exactly. Fio, I need a favour. I have to get to the Deadlock gangs hideout in Deadlock Gorge urgently. I have a team, I just need a pilot and a fast one at that."
"Okay... What's the catch?"
"Well, firstly time ain't really on our side. When I say I need to be there urgently, I mean this is the only ship that can do it... and if I'm honest... this ain't exactly a sanctioned op."
Fio raised her eyebrows, clearly interested. "You're going on an unsanctioned op and you thought of me? I'm flattered. One question. Why not ask Tracer? She's a pilot and a very good one at that."
"She isn't cleared for active duty yet and I'd rather not risk her health. Fio, you're pretty much the only other pilot I trust with this."
"Oh, go on then. So long as this doesn't come back to haunt me, I'll get you there. Besides, gives me the chance to open up the engines on the old girl."
Route 66- A few hours later
Despite the distance between Gibraltar and the United States, the team had managed to make relatively good time. It was one of the many advantages of using the old Blackwatch dropships. They were far faster than the Orca's as well as the other dropships Overwatch used. However, this meant that the occupants inside had to be strapped in, along with the other items they'd brought along. If they didn't do this, they'd be on the floor at the back of the aircraft.
Another advantage was the pilot herself. Fio knew this ship inside and out and knew what it was capable of. At full power, the aircraft could move and Fio hadn't turned down the power since they'd snuck away from Gibraltar and made altitude. After a long journey, the ship began to descend and Fio finally began reducing the power to the engines, allowing the agents aboard to unbuckle and walk around.
"I had almost forgotten how fast this dropship could move." Genji said, standing up for the first time since they took off.
"To be honest, I'd kinda forgotten myself. At least Blackwatch managed to do something right." McCree added, walking over to the door to the cockpit and knocking it. "How far till we're there?"
"Not long. I'm descending towards the LZ but I'm keeping an eye out for any Talon activity." Fio answered over the intercom. "I'll say when we're about to land."
With this, the group of agents began checking their equipment, no one speaking as they did so. McCree pulled out his revolver, loading six bullets into it before placing it back into its holster. Genji checked his blades, spinning the one around him before placing it away and checking his shrunken. Hanzo readied his arrows, while Baptiste began checking over his own equipment, making sure his weapon and immortality field were both operating correctly.
"I am curious to know if anyone has noticed that this dropship is missing." Hanzo eventually said, breaking the tension in the room.
"Oh, I'm fairly certain they've noticed." McCree replied, chuckling for a moment. "I'm fairly certain I'm gonna get an earful when we get back too."
"Um... Jesse..."
"What's wrong Fio?"
"We're nearly there but I'm opening the doors. You need to see this..."
Fio's uneasy tone put everyone on edge and as the doors opened, they revealed just what she'd seen. They were just about to land next to the diner, the dropship hovering just to the right of the road, above the large cliff edge. The road was littered with bodies, many of which were wearing Deadlock colours. Further along the road, smoke could be seen rising from somewhere, though it wasn't clear exactly where from. As the team left the ship, it became clear that the few bodies which weren't Deadlock gang members belonged to Talon.
"Fio, get to safety but keep close by, in case we need a quick getaway." McCree told the pilot, taking command of the small team he had.
"Copy that."
"Genji, check inside the diner."
McCree knelt down next to one of the few Talon soldiers that had been taken down, turning the body over and checking their pockets for anything that might help. Annoyingly, McCree came up empty handed.
"Seven bodies inside the diner. Six Deadlock, one Talon."
"At least there aren't any civilians." Baptiste said, as McCree stood back up and Genji rejoined the group.
"Let's hope that continues..." McCree trailed off, looking over towards the smoke rising nearby, taking a guess at where it was coming from. "We need to move."
Deadlock gang hideout- Fifteen minutes earlier
Ashe moved through the hideout at a surprising speed, Bob a mere few steps behind as she headed straight towards the main entrance. She had another meeting with a representative for Talon, which would hopefully lead to another job and more money coming their way.
Since their last meeting, Ashe had stepped up the gangs presence in the area, wanting to secure the area as best she could. McCree being able to just walk into the hideout was embarrassing enough, never mind him, along with whoever that other girl was, taking down all the gang members inside.
At least Talon had agreed to give them another chance. After all, they could only rob so many targets before the police started to put the pieces together and they needed the money. Ashe suspected their reputation in the local area had likely helped with that decision.
Once she reached the main doors, she nodded towards the closest gang member, telling him to open the door. Bob stopped a short distance away, next to another gang member, the two of them keeping their weapons lowered but ready.
As the door opened, it became clear that they weren't meeting one person. Instead, on the other side of the large door stood a squad of eight soldiers, all of which were heavily armed. The one closest to the door was carrying a metal briefcase, his rifle slung over his shoulder.
"Wasn't expecting a whole squad of soldiers." Ashe said, considering they were a bit too heavily armed for a simple meeting.
"It's security." The one trooper bluntly replied. "I'm sure you heard about the Overwatch recall."
"Yeah, I heard about it. Don't worry, the gang's all over the area. If they come close to this place, we'll know. Now, perhaps we should conduct our business inside."
The squad leader, or at least the man Ashe considered was the squad leader, nodded in agreement, signalling his squad inside the hideout. Ashe walked ahead of them, Bob along side her, as she lead them towards the back of the hideout.
"So, what's this new job you have for us?" Ashe asked, once they reached the back of the hideout. It was the same position the gang used for their previous meeting with Reaper, as the gang members standing guard had eyes over the entire hideout.
"There's a armoured truck that's going to be transporting some cargo through the area in a few days time. We want you to hit it and take the cargo."
"Sounds easy enough. What about payment?"
"Fourteen thousand. Half now, half on completion."
Ashe considered the offer. Easy sounding job, large payment... it didn't take her long to decide.
"Show me the money and you have yourself a deal."
The squad leader nodded, passing the case over to Ashe. She quickly opened it, glancing at the large amount of money inside, before closing it and passing it to Bob.
"Take this to the back room Bob."
The Omnic did as he was told, taking ahold of the case and carrying it out of sight. At this point, the squad leader briefly turned his head, looking towards one of his troopers, who nodded their head at him and subtly pulled out a small remote from his pocket.
"So, give me some details about the target." Ashe asked. "What's the security like?"
"Oh, I wouldn't be concerned about any security."
Suddenly, a violent explosion rocked the hideout, causing a number of the gang members to turn towards the source. The door to the back room was now thick with smoke and the sound of the room collapsing filled Ashe with worry.
"What the..?"
Ashe realised far too late what was happening, as a surge of intense pain suddenly flooded her body. She was forced to place her arms on the trooper in front of her, as she reluctantly looked down to her right side, which was the source of the pain.
The Talon squad leader had stabbed her and a large knife was now being forced into her. Ashe didn't even hear the other Deadlock gang members shout her name, or even register when the rest of the Talon soldiers being shooting them. All she could focus on was the unbearable pain, as the squad leader pushed the knife further in. In the end, Ashe's legs could no longer support her.
Once she fell, the trooper let go of the knife, not bothering retrieving it. Ashe held her side and looked up, seeing him grinning at her.
"Talon thanks you but your services are no longer required." He kicked Ashe in her face, then turned to his squad.
"Tell squads two and three to terminate the rest of the Deadlock gang. No survivors. Then burn this place to the ground."
"What about her?" One of the troopers asked, pointing his weapon to Ashe.
"Leave her. She'll just have to hope she bleeds to death before the flames get her."
Ashe was powerless to stop them. All she could do was watch, as some of the troopers stepped outside and then returned with canisters full of what she guessed was gasoline, all while she clutched onto her side, trying to slow down the flow of blood from the knife wound.
It didn't take them long to finish and for a fire to be ignited. Once the hideout was burning, the troopers all left, leaving Ashe to her fiery demise.
The flames spread through the hideout quicker than Ashe expected and the entire place was soon burning. She needed to get out. No one was coming for her and if she didn't pass out from blood loss, she was going to burn to death.
"I'm not... going out... like this..." Ashe muttered to herself, gritting her teeth and clutching her side as she struggled to her feet. She was in an immense amount of pain but she concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. For a time, she was doing well and there was hope that she might actually make it out.
That was, until the fire reached a box of explosives. The explosion caused a chain reaction, with further boxes detonating. The force knocked Ashe to the floor, which was followed by even more pain. Her hat had fallen off her head, yet somehow, the knife had stayed in her side. Despite this, the wound worsened and she was now losing more blood.
She began crawling, desperately trying to get out. Eventually, she just couldn't continue. She gave in, closed her eyes and accepted her fate. At least she had some comfort knowing she'd be dead before the flames got to her.
"Genji, over here!"
For a moment, Ashe considered she was hearing things. She knew no one else was in the hideout, let alone inside looking for survivors. Until a hand touched her shoulder and flipped her over, revealing who her rescuers were... and when she weakly opened her eyes, one was a face she never expected to see.
"Jesse..?"
The cowboy knelt down next to her. "Stay with me Ashe. We'll get you outta here."
"Jesse, we need to go, now!"
McCree knew Genji was right. The hideout was burning, Ashe was injured badly and it didn't look like anyone else was alive in here. He picked up Ashe's hat and then her, ignoring the sounds of pain as he did so and began following the ninja back the way they'd came. Genji kept his Dragonblade out, removing any obstacles that collapsed into their way.
Once they were outside again, McCree rushed over to the nearest building, where Baptiste and Hanzo were waiting and gently placed Ashe down. Baptiste was next to her seconds later, throwing down an immortality field so he had time to work.
However, when he analysed the knife, along with how bad the wound was, Baptiste reconsidered his options. Ashe wasn't in the best of states and that wasn't taking into account the knife currently sticking out of her right side. Her clothes around the knife, along with her hands, were covered in fresh blood. She was currently plastered in black soot, which was most noticeable in her hair and there were also a few minor burns, mostly on her hands and arms.
Baptiste considered his next move and after a quick debate with himself, reached for his weapon. He activated his healing aura and fired a volley of healing grenades next to Ashe, sealing up the knife wound as best he could.
"Whoa, hang on. The knife's still in her." McCree quickly noted, very much questioning the field medics decision.
"I'm not sure if removing it is a good idea." Baptiste replied, as the immortality field shut itself down. "I'm worried that if I remove it, I might end up killing her."
"But you have that immortality field! Not to mention those grenades!"
"They're designed to be used for small injuries and during combat. Not for large injuries like this and certainly not when someone's lost a lot of blood while inside a burning building. If she goes into shock I can't do anything out here. So, I'm certain that the best course of action is to keep her alive until we get her back to base. Mercy and all our medical equipment is there. She has the best chance if we get her there."
McCree went to speak again but was stopped by Genji, who stepped in to calm the cowboy down.
"Jesse, why do you think Mercy always checks over everyone's injuries after a battle? Biotic equipment was not designed to be a permanent solution, nor does it work perfectly and fix every injury. Ashe stands the best chance if we get her back to Mercy."
Jesse stopped and considered what he'd just heard, before sighing. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry doc..."
"Don't worry about it. Now, we need to get her out of here."
McCree activated his earpiece. "Fio, we need an extraction."
"Copy that. I'll get to the extraction zone ASAP."
"Talon might still be in the area." McCree now noted. "Genji, Hanzo, check the area and find out where they are."
The two brothers moved out, splitting up to cover more ground. As they left, McCree knelt down next to Ashe, who'd remained unusually quiet during the last conversation.
"Ashe."
"Jesse..." Ashe replied, her voice slightly croaky. "Gonna be honest, I wasn't expecting you of all people to come rescue me."
"Well, I was in the area. Thought I'd drop in... By the way, I managed to save your hat."
Ashe actually managed to crack a small smile, leaning her head forward so McCree could place it back on her head. "Well... that's the important thing."
Just then, a loud noise was heard from the hideout, which sounded like metal being twisted. McCree and Baptiste quickly aimed at the doorway, seeing a large figure step out from the doorway. It was a damaged Omnic, one that McCree and Ashe recognised instantly.
"Bob? How the hell..? What kind of upgrades did you give him?"
The Omnic currently had armour missing from its left side, exposing its internal parts and wiring and his left arm appeared to be damaged badly. However, despite the damage to his left hand, Bob was holding a rifle in it, Ashe's rifle to be exact, along with her coach gun.
Even though he was damaged, Bob still managed to raise his right hand, activating his weapon and aiming it at McCree. Thankfully, Ashe managed to stop him.
"BOB, STOP!" She shouted, wincing in pain afterwards. "McCree saved me... he ain't our enemy."
The Omnic immediately obeyed, lowering his weapon and walking over to Ashe. He gently knelt down next to her, looking at the knife currently sticking out of her right side.
"I thought I'd lost you for a moment... Its good to see you're okay."
The Omnic didn't seem to react to the statement. Instead, it placed Ashe's weapons next to her, letting her look over them. She'd placed them out of the way, yet close by during the meeting with Talon. Evidently, Bob had found them as he was leaving and picked them up.
After a quick inspection, Ashe concluded they weren't too damaged, yet the sights on her rifle weren't activating correctly. Despite this, she was still able to use it, even with the limited amount of ammo she had on her.
"Okay, at least Ashe has a way of defending herself if it comes to that. Genji, you two found anything?"
"We have. There are a few Talon soldiers still in the area, which number up to a small squad at most. We can take them out on your word."
"Do it as quietly as possible. Don't want to attract any unnecessary attention."
"Understood."
"As for us, we need to get to the extraction zone. Baptiste, you lead the way. Bob, you follow behind me. I'll carry Ashe and go in the middle."
"Excuse me? You ain't carrying me." Ashe objected, only for Baptiste to quickly counter her.
"You shouldn't be walking while that knife is still in you. You could end up reopening the wound and worsening the damage."
"And Bob can't do it. He's got a damaged arm, never mind the fact he's made of metal and just stepped out of a fire. You wanna add serious burns to your list of injuries?"
"You have a metal arm. Ain't that gonna to be just as hot?"
McCree placed his other hand on his prosthetic arm, leaving it there as he replied. "Nope, it's cool enough to carry you."
Ashe could only sigh. "Fine... Bob, carry my rifle, will ya. Can't exactly use it while he's carrying me."
Bob took the weapon off Ashe, leaving her only with her coach gun. Then, McCree gently picked her up, taking note of the hisses on pain as he did so.
"You good?"
Ashe breathed heavily for a moment, before settling down. "Yeah... just hurts like shit."
"Can't imagine why."
The walk to the extraction zone was uneventful, something Ashe was grateful for. However, it didn't make it any easier. Everywhere she looked, whether it was the road or inside the buildings, there were dead gang members. Her gang members. She didn't try to count them, there were too many to even bother.
As they reached the extraction zone, it became clear to Ashe that the Deadlock gang was dead. Only her and Bob seemed to have survived.
That was on her.
She didn't say anything afterwards. Not when the dropship arrived. Not when she was placed down on a makeshift table and not when Baptiste began working to stabilise her. Not one word.
Watchpoint Gibraltar- Later that day
The team had been away from the base for a long time now and sure enough, someone had noticed. Morrison had realised far too late what McCree was planning, yet after thinking it over, he didn't know if he would have actually tried to stop him. So, when the missing dropship finally reappeared on their sensors, Morrison had the landing pad cleared of non essential personnel and had a squad ready to meet them, in order to take Bob into custody.
A few minutes later, the ships pilot radioed in, relaying their situation and the fact they had two new passengers, one of which was critically wounded. For that reason, Angela was immediately informed and was currently preparing for anything.
Morrison also decided to keep his distance for now. He understood why McCree had gone and, with the benefit of hindsight, he should have checked in with him to see what he was thinking. It had affected him more than Morrison had expected so he wanted to be sure there was nothing else that could cloud his judgement.
The dropship soon reached the landing pad, gently hovering down and opening its doors. McCree was the first person out, once again carrying the wounded Ashe. The troopers at the landing pad stepped aside, allowing McCree through. Baptiste followed shortly after, chasing after the cowboy as he headed towards the medical bay.
By now, Ashe was beginning to feel light headed. Baptiste has done his best to keep the blood loss to a minimum, yet he couldn't stop it altogether and she was still in a lot of pain. Even now, she was wincing as McCree carried her, the wound worsening once again.
When he reached the med bay, McCree almost knocked one of the assistants over, rushing over to Angela, who had a bed ready for Ashe. Baptiste joined them moments later, just as Angela began looking over Ashe, deciding how best to proceed.
"What's her first name?" She asked McCree.
"Elizabeth."
"Elizabeth, can you hear me?"
Ashe groaned slightly before answering, her eyes struggling to adjust to the lights above her. "Yeah, I can hear you."
"You need to have an emergency operation to remove this knife and repair the damage it's caused. Is that okay with you?"
"Just get this thing out of me."
Ashe's voice was slightly shaky and Angela could see she was worried. Even McCree had noticed, seeing the mask that Ashe had built up beginning to crumble.
"Hey." Angela said softly, taking ahold of one of Ashe's hands, not at all phased by the blood present on them. "You'll be okay. Don't worry."
"Yeah, she's the best doc on the planet. You're in good hands Ashe."
Ashe seemed to calm slightly, gently nodding her head. "Alright. Just, get on with it... please."
Angela gave Ashe a reassuring smile. "Okay. I'm going to give you something to put you to sleep shortly but first, do you have any medical conditions I need to know about."
"No."
"That's good." Angela replied, looking up at McCree. Baptiste had already been pulled aside by one of the other doctors in the med bay and was currently telling them about Ashe's injuries.
McCree stayed for a few minutes, watching as Angela gave Ashe something that quickly put her to sleep, before a team of medical staff helped push her bed towards one of the operating theatres at the back of the med bay.
"I'll... I'll leave you to it." McCree reluctantly said, as Ashe was pushed away.
Angela briefly paused, turning to the cowboy. "She'll be okay Jesse. I promise you."
The cowboy nodded, tipping his hat at the medic as she turned back and headed after the other medical staff, who were only a short distance ahead of her. McCree on the other hand turned and left the medical bay, not wanting to get in the way.
He considered heading to the mess hall, though the bar in the agents lounge seemed more appealing right now. However, he never managed to decide where to go, as Morrison was standing outside the medical bay, leaning against a nearby wall with his arms folded.
"You know, I don't remember authorising any operations in the States."
Morrison's tone of voice wasn't harsh, like McCree expected. In fact, it seemed as if Morrison wasn't angry at all.
"Yeah well, you never specifically said I couldn't go."
Morrison let out a small chuckle. "No, suppose I didn't... How many..?"
"Just Ashe and Bob... seems Talon got everyone else."
"I see." Morrison paused, watching as McCree found a cigar from his pocket and lit it. "Be honest with me Jesse. Do you really think she'll agree to help us?"
"I did, didn't I?"
"Under different circumstances. I read the reports back in the day and I've heard what you've said about her... she doesn't seem the type of person who'll help us, unless it was out of revenge. We don't need another hothead running around."
"I've known Ashe for a long time." McCree explained, taking a puff of his cigar. "I know a lot about her, probably know a few things Bob doesn't and he knows pretty much everything. She's tough, strong willed and won't have things any way but hers. She loved Deadlock... yet the whole gang was just wiped out in a blink of an eye. On top of that, she was stabbed and left to die as the hideout burned down around her. It's gotten to her. I can see it has. She might be reluctant to help but I believe I can bring her around."
"And the Omnic?"
"Bob? He's completely loyal to Ashe. Whatever she does, he'll be right next to her."
Morrison went silent again, thinking everything over. He wasn't wearing his visor, yet McCree still couldn't read him. Eventually, Morrison nodded his head.
"Alright. If you think she'll help, then you're the one who's going to convince her."
"Fine by me... assuming she makes it through her operation..."
Morrison raised an eyebrow. "From what I've gathered, she's stubborn. That and we have one of the best doctors in the world in there. I rate her chances pretty high."
"I hope your right."
"One more thing. She doesn't get any special treatment. Once Angela gives her the all clear, she goes into a cell. She's still a criminal and a dangerous one at that."
"Won't argue with that."
Morrison began to walk away, yet stopped after a few steps, hearing McCree speak up.
"I'll be honest with ya. I thought you'd be angrier."
Morrison sighed, turning back to face the cowboy. "I'm not angry. Frankly, I understand why you went. You and Ashe have... history. On the other hand, I'm sure you understand why I didn't want to send anyone."
"I get it. We had limited time and you didn't want to risk any of our lives. I can't argue with that. However, despite everything that's happened between us, I couldn't just stand back and let her die... it's not how I work."
"I can respect that. In hindsight, I probably could have handled the situation a bit better."
"I think we both could have." McCree paused, before extending his hand. "No hard feelings?"
Morrison managed to crack a smile. "No hard feelings."
"Wanna go grab a drink? Ain't doing much else."
Morrison shrugged. "Why not. Ana keeps telling me I need a break."
McCree chuckled. "She certainly ain't wrong about that."
Authors note
Hey everyone :)
Hope you enjoyed this chapter and are enjoying the story so far. With Overwatch 2 being announced, I wanted to add Sojourn and Echo. Luckily, the announcement came when I was already thinking about the content for this chapter, so that was pretty helpful. :D
Anyways, thanks for reading this far and see you in the next chapter. :)