It took some time for Hana, Genji and Ana to reach the Himalayas. It was quicker than Hana expected, as they were able to commandeer and reboot some abandoned hover cars. The benefit of these was that they could travel at tremendous speeds on auto-pilot, and expertly navigated the debris left behind by the Fallout. Every now and then Hana saw clumps of meandering dead, or rattling Omnics, but even if they were spotted there was no way for the enemies to keep pace. Every sight, every building, every collapsed city and stretch of abandoned Chinese plains, all were passed and left behind.
And then there were mountains. These were no ordinary mountains, no hills they had seen in the distance. These were real mountains, Himalayan mountains, taller than comprehension. It was cold here, too. Snow fell heavily on top of the mountains, but there was plenty of it below as well.
Ana noticed the look on Hana's face. 'It's going to get chilly.' She said. 'I hope that MEKA suit has thermal heating.'
Hana pursed her lips. It was not built for these kinds of climates. She knew it could withstand very cold temperatures, but her idea of very cold and the Himalaya's idea of very cold might be different. Genji, of course, was not shivering at all. He had wrapped a scarf around his head, but even that was unnecessary, and seemed to be more out of habit than need.
'You're sure he's up there?' Genji asked.
Ana nodded. 'He's still not speaking to you?'
'Not yet. I think this is a test. I have to find him on my own.'
'You are not on your own.' Ana replied. 'I will show you the way.'
'And I will help.' Hana said. She wasn't sure exactly how she would help yet, but it seemed likely that they would need her before the trip was done. According to Ana they still had some distance to travel through the mountains before they reached the monastery.
'This path,' Ana said, pointing to a trail of dirt that tapered off beneath their feet, 'will lead us to the monastery. It is an ancient path.'
'They should have upgraded it sometime in the last thousand years.' Hana muttered, trying with difficulty to distinguish between the trail and the dirt.
'I'm sure it wasn't necessary,' Ana replied. 'Not many people go to the monastery.'
'Maybe they would if they upgraded the road.'
Ana cleared her throat, ignored the interruption, and forged on. 'The path is winding and often hard to follow. I know the general way, but we will have to be careful for rogue Omnics, or undead, or other dangers.'
'Like what?' Genji asked.
'Like falling boulders, or hidden traps.' Ana peered ahead with her one good eye. Then, without saying anything further, began to walk.
Genji and Hana followed behind. Hana was not in her MEKA suit, as the terrain was difficult enough to follow on two feet, let alone the clunky metal legs of the MEKA. She left it at the base of the mountain. The wrist remote she had would call the MEKA to her if she needed it.
Ana led the way, pulling her heavy coat tight around her shoulders as the air grey chilly. Genji walked behind, back straight, unbothered by the temperature. The katana of his forefathers gleamed on the strap tied across his shoulders. Hana wasn't bothered by the cool air – yet. Her skin-tight insulated suit which protected her from the heat of the MEKA was also more than capable of warding off the cold. But she suspected it would not last.
The first Omnic they came across was harmless. It had clearly once been infected with the virus, but was now little more than scrap metal. It bumped its head against a rock again, again, again, stuck in a repetitive, futile action. Hana thought it looked a little as though the Omnic had lagged out of life itself. Genji cut it down with a single swipe, which seemed like a wasted effort. But when Hana saw the look on his face, she understood. Genji was one of them now. If there was any chance that one of these Omnics might have an artificial consciousness trapped in a broken body, it was a kindness to let them pass on.
They said nothing, and kept walking.
The second Omnic they spotted was standing at the top of a mountain ridge ahead of them, holding a gun. When it saw them it began to spray wildly and scream. This was one of the scary Omnics, as Hana had used to call them; a robot in the shape of a man. She was about to call her MEKA when Ana quietly took aim with her rifle, fired, and took the Omnic's head off. It was a peaceful, smooth, practised movement.
They said nothing, and kept walking.
After a few hours on the trail Hana was almost too tired to stop walking. Her legs had found a steady rhythm and her muscles burned. The sun was getting low in the sky and she couldn't help but wonder if flying the MEKA would have been easier. But it was a decision she would have to deal with now.
'How are you feeling?' Ana asked. For the first time Hana noticed how old the sniper was – far too old to be taking this mountain hike so easily. Hana straightened herself and tried to look less fatigued than she really was.
'I'm fine.'
And, really, she was ok. After all, Hana might be young but she'd been through more military training than many adults, both in Korea and then in Japan. She had not been chosen for the MEKA program for nothing. She was not considered a deadly weapon for no reason.
'Well, if you need anything, let me know.' Ana sounded surprisingly caring, for someone who had not hesitated to use a sleeping dart on Hana only a few days ago.
'I do have one question.' Hana said. 'This trail is awful. I've lost sight of it many times, and I have two eyes. How do you know the way so confidently?'
'I've been here before.' Ana looked up, as if staring into the eye at the peak of the mountain, but Hana suspected the old woman was remembering something. 'When I fought for Overwatch we were tasked to come here, once. It was a very brief meeting, but I remember some of…'
They were interrupted by the third Omnic they spotted on the trail. The third Omnic was accompanied by the fourth, fifth, and several dozen more. They were rushing down the trail in a messy stampede, an avalanche of scrap metal and violence, and they were only seconds away.
'Call your MEKA!' Genji shouted, flinging a shuriken which took down the first of the Omnics.
Hana already had. She pulled her pistol from her waist and started firing up at the wave. It was impossible to miss. Ana was now on one knee, her rifle in hands. The old woman took one shot, deliberate, then another, then one more. And that was all they had time for.
Genji had drawn the katana and was standing in front. His enhanced strength and quick reflexes allowed him to use it more effectively than he ever had before – or at least more effectively than Hana had ever seen before. He slashed left, and two of the robots collapsed in a dismantled heap. He slashed right, and took down two more. Then he darted ahead, cutting a swathe through the oncoming tide. They washed over him, around, carried on by their own momentum.
Hana screamed. She had never faced enemies like this before – not real enemies, at least. Real Omnics, willing to shoot her, cut her, tear her limb from limb. And she was exposed, naked without her MEKA. Alone.
She kept firing, of course, but it was useless. Within an instant they were upon her. She felt the first slash on her arm, then another on her stomach, then she took a blow to the head and collapsed backwards. She was not unconscious, though she wished she was. The Omnics hurried past, stepping past her, on her, all over her, treading her down into the dirt, trampling her…
For a brief moment it seemed like Hana would die like that, staring at the feet of the Omnic army, barely able to catch a glimpse of the sky through the forest of their bodies...
Then there was a brilliant flash and, for a moment, Hana didn't know what was happening. Then she felt it – a surge of energy as tangible as the MEKA suit she wore. Hana stood up. There were Omnics all around, but suddenly they didn't seem so bad. She looked at her arm, noticed the skin and flesh stitching itself back together. Her vision cleared, her muscles tensed for action, her head cleared.
Ana was by her side. She was holding some sort of grenade, but it was far from normal. 'This will help,' the old woman said. Then, by way of explanation, 'A biotic grenade. I made it myself.'
'Thanks!'
Hana raised her pistol, took down the two enemies nearest, and then looked up ahead. Ana must have cleared a lot of the enemies, but there were still plenty more swarming all over Genji. She looked back at the old warrior, stared into her one good eye. The Suit would take another few minutes to reach their destination – it was quick, but not that quick. It seemed Ana was their only hope.
'Do you have anything else that might help?' she asked.
Ana nodded seriously, held out an unlabelled dart, and jabbed it into Hana's arm before she could say anything.
'Normally,' Ana began, 'I would use this on someone… bigger. But I can't get to Genji through all that mess, so it's up to you.'
Hana could already feel it rushing through her veins. Being healed by the biotic grenade had been good, but it was nowhere near as good as this. She felt strong, powerful, ten feet tall. She felt invincible.
A few Omnics peeled off from the main group. Hana didn't even bother with her gun this time. She swept the back of her hand across and knocked the heads of two machines clean off. The third lunged, but she kicked it down with her boot like a fireman.
Ana gestured towards the main fight. 'Hana, go! You're powered up! Get in there!'
Hana ran.
The Omnics were everywhere, and Genji was trapped somewhere in the middle, but she tore through them like a charging rhinoceros, sweeping the robots off their feet with her arms, legs, and then finishing them off with the gun. Even her trigger finger felt empowered. She seemed to be spraying twice as quickly as she normally did. Her enemies waded through the air as if in slow motion, jabbing at her with jagged edges, swiping at her with blades, shooting in her general direction. But by the time their attacks had fallen she was already in a different position, tossing the Omnics away with fury.
She picked one up by the shoulders and tossed it into the mountain side where it was impaled on a sharp rock. Then she turned, ducked, and punched upwards. Her uppercut took an Omnic by surprise and it fell backwards. She grabbed its legs, stood, and swung the machine around and around, eliminating three more Omnics in the process. Pieces of detached robot flew like debris from the destruction of Hana. She picked up a discarded Omnic head and pegged it at a fleeing machine, causing it to crumble.
And that was all.
Genji was covered in scratches, which unfortunately Ana did not have a cure for, but was otherwise ok. He had been pinned down by so many Omnics he could not swing his sword, but they had not managed to hurt him. As the power up wore off, Hana took several deep breaths, and looked back at Ana.
'Thank you. That was… amazing.'
'Don't get used to it,' the old woman replied gravely. 'I don't have many of those left.'
'What was it?'
'I call it a nano-boost. Stolen technology I have adapted to my own needs. The biotic grenade is similar. The nano-bots are tricky to program, but if you have the technology to do so they can be used quite effectively.'
Hana wanted to ask more, but Genji interrupted her by putting an arm over her shoulder and turning her around. She looked up, about to tell him not to manhandle her, when she saw what he was looking at.
Standing on the top of the nearby precipice was an Omnic in monk-like robes, hands clasped in front of him. Though his expression was blankly unreadable, as were most of the Omnics, the nine lights on his forehead glowed a friendly pale blue. He nodded with respect toward them, and then held out a hand in welcome.
'My name is Tekhartha Zenyatta,' the Omnic said. 'I have called you here because your souls, like mine, are linked. We are the heroes that will restore civilisation. And Genji, you must embrace your destiny if you are to call upon the spirits of your ancestors. Now please, follow me. Around this corner is the Shambali Monastery, formerly the home of Mondatta. And we have much to discuss.'
The Omnic turned and led the way. Genji and Ana followed. Hana turned in time to see her MEKA suit flying in through the mountains, directed by the GPS on her wrist.
Just in time.