The old soldier from the facility said his name was 76.
'Seventy-six?' Tracy asked, trotting along behind him, still full of the adrenaline of victory. Cassidy and the others followed behind, wary of a trap. 'That's not much of a name.'
'I never had much of a name,' he replied, voice grim, but with no trace of remorse. He did not want their pity. 'I had a number. I was one of many. Now I'm one of few.'
They travelled deeper into the mountain, the government facility, and noticed a few more of the identically dressed soldiers either sitting in offset rooms. It was a deep facility, that clearly went many levels underground. Some of the rooms were full of soldiers nursing wounds. Many more rushed past perpendicular corridors. Each of them, without fail, was armed. Each of them, without fail, was identical.
'What are ya, clones?' Junkrat asked.
The soldier grunted affirmation. 'Good guess. I was in the first batch of a hundred. Saw all my brothers die. Thousands came after me, most of them are gone now too. You killed Soldier 2,337, 3,589, and 1,919 just a few moments ago. And a couple of others. We called Soldier 1,919 Dome, because he was going bald. Only one of us who ever did. Some tremendous genetic fuckup, I guess. There's a few of us out there. But that's all irrelevant.'
'What are you doing here?' Mercy asked.
'Defending ourselves.'
'Against enemies?'
'Against everyone. Since the Fallout everything ground to a halt. We didn't know what else to do, really. We were always good at following orders, but not much else. So we have nothing to do but sit here and try to wait it out.'
Cassidy could imagine how it had started. In the decades before the Fallout, every country and faction and megalomaniac who could afford it had wanted their own private army. World War III was only days away, or so it seemed. The South Koreans had started a program of MEKA warriors piloted by young, talented gamers. The Japanese had allowed the powerful Shimada clan to take control of their internal politics. The Europeans had built robots and pushed for artificial intelligence, hoping they could build machine soldiers smart enough to make decisions in the heat of battle. The Americans had started cloning, apparently, but their efforts had been reduced to a small outpost in just a few years. Suddenly, Cassidy felt sorry for Soldier 76.
For a group without leadership, it seemed that Soldier 76 was running a tight ship. They did not pass a single younger clone without a job; some were cleaning, others were cooking for the evening meal, many were stocking shelves, arming weapons, or moving large crates for a purpose Cassidy could not tell at a glance. All were busy.
The group finally reached a large mess hall, empty except for a TV running static and a silent radio. Soldier 76 came to an abrupt, disciplined stop, and the others filed in around him. Road Hog looked around, glancing longingly at the TV. Junkrat noticed a box of explosives and cackled under his breath. Reaper and Mercy said nothing.
'I'm sorry we attacked you,' Soldier 76 began. 'We have a policy of shooting everything that comes close. We've accidentally killed a few humans that way, but for the most part, it's an important rule. Attacks from omnics and undead are up 40% in the last week.' He sighed. 'I'm glad you seven are alive. Truly. But the world is not a safe place anymore. If you wish to stay here you will be expected to help. You need to take the place of the clones you killed.'
Cassidy watched the reactions of his six companions, people he knew and cared so little about. Tracy was the only one he felt a connection to. He would be happy to do what she decided. So would Genji, no doubt. But Mercy and Reaper seemed to be moving with an agenda of their own, never quite one of the team. Junkrat and Road Hog, he knew, were joined at the hip, brothers-in-arms. Cassidy was the only odd man out. He felt suddenly very alone, and wondered if he could ever make a home for himself among these industrious clones.
Probably not, he realised. He would never be happy as one of many. He was an individual; once a leader of many, now a lone-wolf, never part of the crowd, never blending in.
'We haven't discussed that yet.' Mercy spoke for them all, as usual. 'But we would appreciate your hospitality for this evening, if you're offering it.'
Soldier 76 shrugged. 'Might as well. There are plenty of rooms. I noticed you have your own food and water in the vehicle outside. We won't try and take that from you. But we won't be offering any of our own until you pledge yourselves to us. No hard feelings either way. Your welcome expires tomorrow morning at dawn, so choose wisely.'
'Much appreciated.' Mercy smiled warmly.
Soldier 76 looked unimpressed, but led them to a set of rooms at the end of a corridor. There were eight rooms, all equally plain, with simple bedding and a set of drawers. Too much space. Too much comfort. None of them were used to it. Junkrat already looked jittery, aching to stretch to his leg-and-a-half.
'I'll be posting a guard here,' Soldier 76 informed them. 'I expect you will do the same. There is no trust between us. But do try to get the best night sleep you can.'
The party split up. Mercy and Reaper were already whispering under hushed tones. Genji was glancing around, as if looking for an escape route. Cassidy was looking for a room of his own when he felt a heavy hand fall upon his shoulder. It was Soldier 76. He'd dismissed the group, but clearly wasn't finished with Cassidy.
'You,' the soldier said, 'can come with me.'
Cassidy thought about arguing. How easy it would be to raise his Peacekeeper and shoot the old man. Or to kick him down and call for help. He had allies, didn't he?
But as he looked around he realised that no, he did not have allies. The men and women he was travelling with were not paying any attention to him. They did not care. He was just an extra, tagging along, not part of a pair. The seventh wheel. He turned back to Soldier 76.
'Sure.' He followed the other man back toward the mess hall.
'I recognise you, Cassidy,' the soldier said as they walked. Without the rest of the group stomping along the corridor was quiet, empty, and too wide and open for two men.
'Is that so?' he drawled in return.
'You were the leader of the Deadlock gang last time I checked. What happened to them?'
'We had a… falling out.'
Soldier 76 stopped at a simple plastic table and sat. Cassidy took their chair opposite. A coffee was called for, and one of the younger clones – whom Soldier 76 addressed as soldier 9,812 – delivered it moments later. Soldier 76 sipped the dark, milk-less beverage.
'I hope you like it black,' he said. 'We ran out milk months ago. Sugar just last week. So tell me, why was the Deadlock gang disbanded?'
'Question for a question,' Cassidy bartered. And although the Soldier had no reason to make a deal, as he inequitably held the position of authority, the older man agreed.
'Very well, you first.'
'They were disbanded once, after I led them into a battle which we won, but at a great cost. None of them were happy with me. I was left behind when the remained of the gang moved on. They were disbanded a second time when Reaper and I killed them.'
'Reaper?'
'It's my turn to ask a question.'
Soldier 76 smiled. Though somewhere in his fifties he maintained boyish good locks beneath his tussled white hair. And his broad-shoulders spoke of great strength. He wore the same uniform as the younger men at his command, and Cassidy suspected that if he was wearing their tactical visor he would be almost indistinguishable.
'You're absolutely right. Go on.'
'How have you heard about me?'
'The special agent that used to run this place had info on all the locals, especially the gangs. We had complete bios on every member of the Deadlock gang, most of the local Junkers, and a half dozen families in the area that survived the initial blast. I thought the Deadlock gang hated Junkers, but you seem to be travelling with one.'
Cassidy scowled. He'd hated the Junkers with passion for a while. Their scavenging ways had made things almost impossible for him to find safety and provisions for his own depending gang. But those feelings had passed. In fact he felt almost entirely indifferent to Junkrat. That said, as a general rule, Soldier 76's intel was dead-on.
'This one isn't so unbearable,' Cassidy admitted. 'What's your question?'
'Who are the other members of your outfit, and how did they get past my defences so easily?'
Cassidy described them in shallow detail, not wanting to give so much away. He even gave a brief description of their attack on the facility, though he bitterly counted Soldier 76's enquiry as two questions. There was some that Cassidy did not know; he lacked specific information about how everyone had met, about what type of man Road Hog had been before the Fallout, or where Mercy and Reaper actually came from. He also had no idea why Mike – Genji – had so many enemies, or why Tracy seemed able to flicker back and forth through time to avoid danger. But he did his best. Then it was his turn again.
'Who is this special agent that ran the facility? And why haven't we met them yet?' Cassidy narrowed his eyes further, hoping to look imposing, but the world-weary 76 wasn't fazed – in fact he didn't seem to notice.
'That sounded like two questions.'
'So was your last.'
'Very well. Special Agent Amélie Lacroix was a French assassin. We don't know much about her, but she was sent here to overwatch this facility on behalf of an organisation.'
'What organisation?'
'Wait your turn.' Soldier 76 smiled ruefully. 'You haven't met her yet because she's almost dead. Last month she was captured by enemy agents, brutally tortured for three weeks, and barely escaped with her life. We found her on the brink of death and brought her back here. She's yet to say anything we can use as information.'
Cassidy thought about the value of having a government agent to talk to. There was so much he did not know. What had caused the Fallout? What had caused the dead to rise and hunger? Why were there so many robots built for destruction massacring their way across the country? And how the fuck could they stop it?
'I want to meet this government agent.'
'That's too bad. I'm not prepared to show her to you. And besides, she's too weak to talk.'
'What if I had someone who could help with that? A very skilled healer.'
The old soldier narrowed his eyes sceptically. 'You wanna know why I asked you out here, Cassidy? Above all the others?'
'I assumed it was because of my affiliation with the Deadlock gang.'
'I don't really care about the gang, but I care about leaders. You, Cassidy, are a leader. So is that blonde woman, the one who was speaking for you all earlier. I want to build some trust with someone who can make decisions. Someone who can hold respect.'
'Can't understand why you'd be interested in trustin' me.'
'Because I know what motivates you, what drives you. I know you're a lone wolf, but you came from a pack, and I think secretly you want a new pack. I can work with you. Those other six… are a risk.'
'You don't know shit about me.'
'I don't know shit about Reaper. He wears a mask and I swear I heard his voice in my head earlier. I don't know about the young couple, or how she kept flickering. I don't know a damn thing about the blonde healer. All I know about Junkrat is that he hates you, but I'm guessing anyone could have worked that out by looking at him. And the others… they're all wild cards.'
'I could probably help with that.'
'I'm betting on it.' Soldier 76 leaned forward, his movements denoting expectation and openness. 'But I'd rather be able to count on it.'
'There will be conditions.' Cassidy knew what was happening now. Soldier 76 was asking him to betray his friends. Or at least to give away their secrets – the few that he had been able to prise out of them. Perhaps it was because Cassidy stood out as a loner, perhaps he genuinely did come off as predictable. That was beside the point now. Soldier 76's honesty was his weakness; and now that Cassidy knew what the silver-haired soldier wanted, he had power over him.
'We can work on conditions later,' the Soldier bargained. 'Right now I need to know everything you do.'
'First I need to see your special agent,' Cassidy countered.
'My need is more pressing.'
'You said it yourself, she's at death's door. Let me heal her. Then we can talk again.'
Soldier 76 paused for a moment. He didn't seem to want to commit. But he could see that he had been backed into a corner, and at the moment their best policy was to work together.
'Fine,' he said, 'go get your healer. Then you can meet Lacroix.'
They stood to leave, back towards the dorms, and Cassidy had a passing thought.
'Strange that you should call her by her name. Don't most special agents have codenames or something?'
Soldier 76 led the way up the dark, underground corridor. Deeper into the mountain. Deeper into the secrets.
'They used to call her the Widow Maker. I'm sure you can figure out why.'