The Darkest Knight
Part II: the Claws of Talon
Chapter 19: the Riddle
Jack Morrison had seen his fair share of wars, and massacres.
But this…
This was something else.
He stood in the middle of a rundown shack, somewhere on the outskirts of Beijing, the whistle of snow and sleet from outside hissing through the thin walls.
Ana had tracked their quarry here, a small group of wannabe shimada gangsters.
They had found them on the web talking big about stealing the Shimada name. Of course, he and Ana knew that meant they were after Genji or, his brother.
And they were after his brother, so they couldn't just let these men gain traction, plus they were scum who shot down a family in Singapore just for getting in the way.
Of course his intentions for them had been... less than pure, but this was something else.
The bodies were... charred, but in a way he'd only seen when Winston used his Tesla cannon back in the day.
But he knew Winston wouldn't have done this, after all he and Lena still believed in the 'good' fight.
"Whoever did this…" Ana sighed from where she kneeled next to the closest body.
Jack narrowed his eyes, "they have Winstons tech, or worse."
Ana sighed and stood up, "I'm not sure Jack. The scarring… it looks, almost natural, like an actual bolt of lightning struck them."
He glanced to the roof of the rundown shack, "inside?"
The Sniper simply shrugged and took her place next to him.
"Whatever happened here Jack. I'm not sure we should ignore it."
He looked around, wondering just what happened to the five gangsters.
If it had been just a shootout then they could've just moved on. But after the fiasco in Vienna, and with the newest agent... Nate, on the scene…
He couldn't be sure, if that man wasn't behind it.
He'd seen that man's abilities, the white lightning he commanded, and the fire. No way they could rule him out for this.
Still though…
It's not like the world was gonna miss these men. They were scum, and once upon a time he may have given them fair trial and jury, but that was a very, very long time ago.
Now? These men were the worst kind, and just like Los Muertos, the world would be better off without them.
"We've got more important things to worry about." He and turned away from the carnage, "we'll send something to Lena. They can worry about whatever this is, we need to find that Shimada and deal with Talon."
His feet carried him outside and the wind screamed its anger, his hair flying around as his muscles tensed naturally to the cold.
Ana's soft footsteps followed him into the snow, and her voice pierced the snow through their comms, "Talons been off the grid for months. The least we could do is-"
"Ana,"Jack glanced back at her, his visor flashing, "is this about Fareeha?"
The woman stopped in her tracks, and her eyes were shrouded by the darkness in her hood, "she was caught in a crossfire we should have prevented."
He shook his head, "we tried. We told Lena-"
"We told Lena to stay away, and of course she didn't Jack. Same way we haven't, and we knew about the plans to hit the UN. We could have warned them."
The accusation in her voice was clear.
Jack stopped, his feet sinking into the snow, "we needed the spotlight elsewhere. We needed a distraction to get into-"
"I know." Ana interrupted.
Without looking at him, she walked up to his side and a hand landed on his shoulder, "If we aren't careful Jack… we'll become the very thing we're fighting."
There was no response.
Instead, Jack simply shrugged off her hand and started forward.
The soldier knew she was right.
Problem was…. He honestly didn't care anymore.
He just had to stop them.
At any cost.
Drip.
Drip..
Drip…
The world slowly blurred into view and teary eyes blinked away at the fog over her mind.
Hana released a groan as the fog on her head cleared, only for a rushing headache to slam into her skull like a freight train.
"Shi-bal…" she growled through a grimace.
Instinctively her hand cover covered and massaged at her forehead in a failed attempt to somehow alleviate the pain. It's not like she ever drank, but she hardly ever gotten tipsy, let alone drunk.
Last time this had happened she had been with Marques and they-
Clothes. Lips. A hotel…
She frowned and shoved the memories into the wellpool of repressed thoughts that plagued the back of her mind.
Needless to say being drunk was not her forte, nor his.
She grumbled under her breath, slowly pushing herself off her couch and onto her feet.
Glazed eyes barely glanced at the shattered TV, instead drawn to the table where at least two more bottles of Chamisul, sat emptied of their contents.
She blinked twice at the sight, her slowed mined trying to piece together the night before.
Flashes hit her, brief moments etched into her subconscious. She remembered Claire and the attack, which did nothing but introduce guilt to her heart.
She remembered drinking the first bottle, then… Nate...
Immediately her rage ignited in her, burning away the guilt from before, and though a frown instantly formed, she regretted it a moment later as a throbbing pain shot through her skull.
She grumbled, and started towards her kitchen, ignoring the TV and the bottles as if they were the plague.
Out of habit, her finger flipped on the light switch, only to immediately regret her decision with a few choice curses.
Still, she braved the light and stepped through it, knowing she still had a job to do.
She opened a cabinet and pulled out the largest glass she had, before turning and filling it with water.
Parched lips welcomed the taste of Earth's lifeblood, her throat almost instantly revitalizing as she downed the whole 18oz in one go.
"Fuck," she coughed, her face contorting in a joyful pain as she relished the feeling of relief.
The haze didn't fade obviously, but her body at least felt a few decimal points better.
Through half opened eyes she looked around for her phone, and failing to find it, resorted to looking at the microwave for the time.
8:21.
Her eyes went wide.
Shit!
Adrenaline spiked in her system, partially alleviating the pain from the hangover. Her heart pounded, and she ignored the disaster that was her living room and dashed straight for her bedroom.
Now her living room may have not been her most… decorated or lively room, but her bedroom was different.
Memorized footsteps allowed the ex gamer to idly slip through her room, avoiding the candy wrappers, clothes, and chip bags lining the floor.
She lunged onto her bed and stared at her open closest, eyes scanning for her uniform before she dashed forward and yanked the accursed thing out of the closet.
Her bed itself was centered at the back of her room, where as a three monitor taking computer, along with a stat of the art custom gaming chair sat on the other side, where A rug, a plush maroon colored beauty, sat underneath.
She dashed from her small room, the blinds still shut and where faded posters of games and celebrities lined the walls, and into her restroom.
In record time that would've baffled both males and females, Hana Song was able to dress and perfect herself in at least 10 minutes. Her hair was slicked back in a tight bun, her dress blues pressed cleanly, and her makeup cleaned up to with just enough precision and beauty to make her both intimidating yet beautiful.
She stepped back into her room, her old clothes cradled in her arms before she fished her phone and wallet from the old pants. She tossed the clothes aside, adding to the mess of clothes and candy wrappers already la ting siege to her floor, then dashed from her room snagging her keys as she left her apartment behind.
She cursed to herself as she ignored the halls of her complex or any other residents and simply ran to the stairs. In a mere minute she managed to leapfrog her way down the stairwell and to the parking lot.
Her blue little car sat in the parking spot nearest to her building, a lucky grab she had managed late late night.
It was basically a god send, and she moved the fastest her body could feasibly carry her into the vehicle before starting it up.
She adjusted her mirror, reversed, and hit the gas.
Of course, the ride itself was filled with nothing more than the usual morning traffic, and of course a few choice curse words were sent towards a few drivers that seemed to exist for the sole reason of getting in her way.
Still, she made it in her usual time, a short ten minute drive to the base, but her heart was racing as she looked at the time.
8:56.
Her heart almost ruptured her throat, and she took a deep breath to steady herself as she drove her car straight into a parking space.
She blinked as the fuzz from last night hit her once more, the hangover reminding her of its presence, but she managed to shove it down and focused on the memories from yesterday.
The general had said for them to report somewhere….
Her eyes went wide.
The barracks!
She basically threw and kicked her car door open, and somehow managed to close it, lock it, and start in a less than graceful power walk towards the barracks all within about five seconds.
If she had been any lower of a rank, she would've ran, but she was Hana Song, Captain of one of the most prestigious Mekka teams.
She had to at least carry herself with some form of respect.
Unfortunately the refusal to run cost her another ten minutes just to walk to the barracks main building, which unfortunately was hidden amongst the rest.
It was a white stone building, only about six stories high, and had shining windows with her country's flag flying proudly over the roof, the American flag flying next to it.
She held her head high as she followed the concrete path towards the building, passing by a few officers, and more than enough lower ranked soldiers than she would've liked.
A few glanced at her, some talking amongst themselves about her, though most actually minded their own business.
Fortunately for her, she had long ago learned how to deal with whispers and rumors.
She had been a celebrity, an idol after all. She knew how it all worked.
With a cold face and gait that betrayed no met ion she pushed the doors to the main barracks open.
It wasn't as official looking as the HQ obviously, and not nearly as spacious, but it held a sense of unity about it.
Maybe it was the couches and tables in the front around the TV with several soldiers cheering on some football team form the States. Maybe it was the soldiers at a table playing what looked like poker, or the others playing chess.
Whatever the case her ice facade almost broke when her eyes landed on her team.
And of course the general.
She internally shivered, and in the face of such overwhelming authority and presence her instinctual reaction was to shy away and retreat.
But she was nothing if not a master of her own will. She had beaten the Conductors tortures and machinations, she had beaten death, and had fought with the worst of Talon and lived.
This was nothing even close to that.
So she steeled her resolve and marched forward, the air in the lobby growing immensely sour and tense as she approached the general and her team.
The natural affinity to danger was a trait all humans shared. It was something each of us are born with and know to listen to when the warning system kicks in.
And for the soldiers in the lobby that weren't her, her squad, or the general, they fled the age old instinct fire up, and their eyes cautiously turned towards the meeting though they did their best to avoid detection.
A few even defied that this was no longer the place for their activities and promptly scrambled away as deliberately as they could.
Of course Hana noticed their absence and retreat, and if she was being honest, she knew it was her record and her loyalty to the general that had probably saved her a verbal scolding form the moment she walked in.
But if his face, unreadable to most though it may be, was anything to go by, he was utterly furious with her.
She knew it had probably been over an hour about now, and she had wasted not only her teams time by being late, but his.
There was no way she would be able to talk her way out of this one, and if she knew anything, apologizing for something as late as sleeping in was a mistake one never wanted to do in the military.
So when her team stood to meet her, the General having already been standing since she walked in, she simply swallowed her pride and stood at attention before the leader of South Korea's armed forces.
"Sir," she saluted and kept her eyes firmly locked to his.
He lips were pursed and she could barely make out the nervous faces of her team. The general may have liked her, even favored her some would argue, but they all knew that he-
"Captain Song. Your tardiness doesn't fill me with much confidence about your self proposed mission." He frowned and stepped past her, motioning for them to follow as he went.
She nodded and meet the eyes of Marques.
The larger boy gave her a soft smile which she gratefully returned. Of course that was short lived as Kolden's concerned face entered her view.
He was distant, simply walking by her, but the eyes behind glasses passed by her, all but asking her what had happened, obviously seeing straight through her mask and into her very soul.
She narrowed her eyes at him, only slightly so as not to give away her actual mood, but the boy took the hint and simply hurried on.
She huffed and began to follow when an arm wrapped itself around her shoulders.
For the briefest of moments, she thought it was the armored hand.
Her mind played out the scenario; the apology of the eternal Guardian, her anger fading because her friend had actually chosen to fight with her and not against her, but of course, life was not so favorable.
Instead of the armored guardian, her eyes met those of her best friend, the one back from the dead.
"You good?" The blonde asked with a somber smile, reading the signs from her best friend from years of experience.
Hana huffed once more and nodded, "good enough."
A simple, short answer, but one that was enough for Claire to understand.
The arm tightened into a small hug around her shoulders before releasing, a simple show of support that went a long way for the gamer.
So she steeled herself, pushing away the pain of alcohol and the anger of friendship to once more lead and listen.
Swiftly she made her way to the front of the group, careful to avoid the generals gaze as she managed to walk up next to him.
But as if anticipating the question running through her mind, the general suddenly pulled out a folder, from where she didn't know, and handed it to her.
She blinked once, momentarily confused by the action before the general spoke up, "I had wanted to do this in my office, but I have a meeting with the other generals about Admiral Sun-sins obvious disrespect for the chain of command in less than twenty mintues."
Hana nodded, and placed the folder under the crook of her arm as they followed the general away from the barracks, and followed the sidewalk through the base.
A few officers passed them, saluting the general as they passed.
One would've thought it was a normal day.
But because of her position next to the general, was she able to see how on edge he truly was.
It was subtle, but she noticed the generals eyes, she noticed how they twitched and took in every detail of their surroundings, how he was keenly aware of everything happening around him.
For a moment it made her truly uneasy.
Why would the general be this suspicious in a place where he was undoubtedly the most respected person, and the most protected?
It didn't sit right with her.
Alas, the general didn't let her thoughts spiral out of control, instead he spoke softly but clearly, enough for her team to hear his words, "the details are in the folder. You are all to be dismissed and placed on leave for exactly twenty one days, for emotional purposes regarding the reappearance of Claire."
The gamer blinked, sparing a quick look back Claire who seemed just as surprised by the revelation.
She gulped heavily and replied, "sir, last night I thought you said Claire was to stay on base until she's cleared to leave?"
He nodded, "I was getting to that. Lieutenant Hottette, you are to report to the medical ward for a check, after which you are to join up with Captain Song and the others for a leave."
Again, Hana blinked in naught but confusion.
"Sir, won't there be confusion-"
"The decision was made Captain," he shortly replied, to which she turned away and held her tongue. Then the General continued, "the lieutenant is to stay with your group at all time. She is to always have one other member of her team with her, and is to report to me specifically everyday, exactly at eight pm. Understood Captain?"
"Understood." She replied, softer than normal.
"Good, so the alibi as I was going to say is due to the reappearance of a dead teammate. Now, the circumstances of her revival are still top secret, and though you five may know a very general story, you are all to keep silent on this matter. Let the public speculate. We will release an official statement within the week, so do not," his eyes landed on Hana, "do not, say a word of her story to the press or anyone who asks."
She narrowed her eyes. So the general was using Claire's return to spin a proper narrative for her undercover op? Not bad, though she hoped it fooled whoever it was that was after her.
Again.
Then the man continued, "where you go I don't care. Follow the details in the folder, you will have a one way communication with myself, and Overwatch HQ. I want daily reports from you as well Ms. Song regarding the current status of your operation, and nothing heroic from any of you. We want to lure out whatever shadow organization is after Ms. Song, not cause a scene."
His words were short and to the point.
The General stopped in his tracks, the headquarters in sight while another barracks sat to their left, a street to there right, and only a handful of people in sight, none of which looked like they were even paying attention to them.
He turned to them, his gaze firm as he spoke, "you can go where you wish. However, Keep in mind how spread thin our forces are. As I said you will have support form Overwatch as well, but if things go south…" he shook his head and turned to the HQ, "keep that in mind when you choose where to go. Do not travel often. Don't let them know it's a trap."
'Sir." Hana nodded, her hand curling into fists by her sides as the thought of her attacker from the night before filled her mind.
The General glanced in her direction for split second, "be wise Captain. You are all dismissed."
And with that he left them on the sidewalk and strode towards the HQ.
Hana sighed as he left, her hand absently rubbing her forehead as the tension in the air visibly died.
She licked her lips and pulled the folder from under her arm, the familiar presence of her team gathering around her, all curious to see what secrets the folder held.
But Hana hesitated, her finger gently gripping the edge of the folder, yet she didn't open it.
For some reason, she felt like she should wait. As if, just maybe, this wasn't the right place.
She looked up, eyes as vigilant as the generals as she took in all that was around her. The birds in the trees, the hum of electricity, and the steps of soldiers and officers going about their days.
"We'll open it when we get someplace safe." She slipped the folder under her arm, "I don't think the general trusts the base anymore."
Kolden nodded then added, "well, where should we go? We have leave for three weeks, and staying near the base is probably the opposite of what we want to do if we want to draw these guys out."
Though Kolden could be an ass, he did have a point, loathe she was to admit it.
"But, where do we go?" Ava, who Hana still needed talk about in regards to last night, asked in surprisingly clear English.
She pursed her lips.
Though it'd been a few years, she still had a few connections in Japan. Maybe a nice getaway near Fuji Mountain. Or perhaps somewhere in Europe?
They'd be closer to Overwatch if that was the case, and if anything she knew Nate and Lena would be more than willing to help them accommodate anything, though she would prefer to avoid the Guardian if she could.
"My family's got a place in Japan." Marques spoke up, and all eyes turned to him.
Julian narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, as silent as ever, but the question on his mind as clear as day.
Why not tell them about it?
Marques shrugged, "in all honestly, I don't know! Why would I bring it up? Like we've ever had a real day off in the past couple years! Honestly the last day off we had was last Christmas, and me and Kolden went back to the States. I don't even know when Hana last had a day off."
She rolled her eyes, though… he also had a point.
Damn.
"Where is it?" She asked, her voice scratchy.
He blinked, most likely prepared to answer stupidly before he saw her face, to which he backtracked and replied, "ugh, on the outskirts of Tokyo, close to Mt. Fuji actually. Nice place honestly."
Hana sighed, her eyes turning back towards the base.
"Not gonna lie , I've always wanted to go to Japan." Kolden added, slightly nudging his glasses higher onto his nose with a shrug.
Julian then asked, "is your place defendable? Can it be defended with small arms fire? At least enough to await reinforcements. From either here or Overwatch?"
His voice was deep, and curious, his eyes as intense as the sun as he asked the very question plaguing Hana's mind.
Marques smirked, "Well, does being on the side of a mountain, plus top of the line cameras and alarm systems, and the fact we'll have six of the best trained soldiers ever, count as adequate security?"
Hana once more rolled her eyes, despite her appreciation for the sarcasm, yet Claire was the one who beat her to the punch, "what do you mean side of the mountain?"
His grin only widened.
"Ever seen that old movie Batman begins?"
Hana stared wide eyed at the sight before her.
Now, being a previous celebrity and a well traveled pilot of the military, it was blatantly obvious she had been to her fair share of pristine and high class places. She'd stayed in if ever star hotels, in homes of other celebrities, been to ancient cities of China and Italy.
However, Marques's home was maybe the most impressive place she'd ever been too. Well, at least in regards to privately owned places.
"Holy hell…." Claire gasped from her side.
Kolden sputtered, "dude, shit, why did you never say you owned a place like this!"
'Well," Marques shrugged as he stepped forward, "it's not actually mine, it's my parents, and we'll, they're not always fond of lending out their private places."
Hana shook her head absent mindedly as Claire added on, "but this… geez, it's like you're relatable to Allison Gates or something!"
"Actually she's a distant cousin!" Marques chuckled, walking backwards as he called back to them with a cheeky smile on his face.
Kolden shook his head as he followed the other boy, Jillian looking slightly amused at those exchange as he spoke, "did anyone else know his family was rich?"
D'Va shook her head, "nope." Though she grinned as she started toward, taking in every detail of the house as they went.
Now the house itself was massive, and styled in a completely traditional fashion. It's roof was made of wood and clay, a deep brown layer of tile so laying on the top at an incline as is the style of of traditional housing of the island country.
Around it were large trees, and enough greenery to make the Amazon jungle look brown in comparison. The road they were on, with two small Toyotas they had rented sitting before the massive home, was well paved but high incline road.
After all, the house was seated on the side of Mount Fuji right on a small ledge of it that overlooked the town of Gotemba, with the western half of Tokyo towards the horizon.
The walls were wooden as well, polished and clean, with the front door being made of white translucent paper and a wooden frame called a shoji. Of course, that was after they entered past the gated entranced, which was of course only apart of the impressive large, olds set one walls that surrounded the building.
But once they passed the gate, which was opened via a keycard Marques had, Hana saw it wasn't just one building. No, there were four buildings!
"Wow, this is awesome Marques." Claire smiled, her eyes glittering happily as she passed by Marques and towards the middle buildings; the largest of the four.
Kolden, oh the other hand, seemed more far more confused and simply started forward, his eyes analyzing everything in the small compound; from the ten foot high walls, to the traditional styling and build of the houses.
Hana watched as he slake door ward, wondering what on earth was going through the techies head.
On her right, Jillian simply smiled softly and made his way to the main house, the gentleness of his touch betraying his large size with even as simple an action as opening the door for Ava, who was as quiet as a mouse trailing behind the giant.
She watched as Claire's arm found Kolden and the bright smile charmed the boy into his own. She smiled softly as the two chatted softly and made their way into the main house after Julian and Ava.
"Dad bought it a few years back. Said mom always wanted something in Japan. Didn't tell my step mom that though, told her it was for his business trips here." Marques stepped up next to her, crickets chirping as the moon glittered in the night sky.
"Romantic," she gave him a somber smile.
"A bit," he grinned, a warm wink sent her way not two seconds later.
Heat rushed to her cheeks, and a growl for me in her throat, "no. It was a one time thing."
Immediately the man frowned, and though she tried to start forward, he held out an arm, a dark look on his face.
"We need to talk about-"
She glared at him and pushed past his arm, her eyes forward as she walked by, "it was a mistake Marques."
"Why?"
She stopped and closed her eyes, "why what?"
A hand grabbed her shoulder and gently pulled her around.
She allowed her eyes to meet his, and despite her… regret… she….
But that night. She… she…
Needles. Black masks. The conductor.
"Because it was mistake."
His eyes narrowed, "because of him right?"
Confused she tilted her head, a hand finding itself on her hip, "what're you talking about?"
He sighed, "never mind."
She rolled her eyes.
Now Hana loved her squad, and she loved the fact she was basically built to be a Mekka pilot. She loved Korea, she loved Overwatch and the idea of heroes. She loved her friends for who they were, but…
She did not love what she had done. The fact that Claire was still alive had only made it worse.
Claire had always cared about Marques… more than a teammate should care for one another. And sure, they had thought Claire was dead, but she had still…. they had still…
Drinks. Smiles. Clothes falling to the floor.
She had sworn never to drink again after that night.
Then the attack and Nate...
She girt her teeth as the images, who most would've found pleasant, filled her mind, but slowly morphed into something worse.
Barrels. Black masks. A knife stained with blood.
A Guardian.
"Ever since your stint with Overwatch you've been all weird," Marques started, his arms now crossed with disappointment etched on his face, "it's been months, we've been on several missions, you got attacked again, and…" he growled mad shook his head, "for fucks sake we slept together! Why on earth are you against talking about it?"
She meet his gaze and all emotion drained from it, "we are nothing Marques."
His eyes grew wide but she continued without a moment's pause, "we aren't lovers, or anything of the sorts. We're teammates, even friends, but if you can't act like it, I'll personally see you removed from active duty under the guise of emotional compromisation. We clear?"
There was something in his eyes, something more akin to betrayal than hurt, but he simply pursed his lips and nodded, "Sir."
And with that he walked past her, his steps heavy and his presence marked with hurt as he made his way inside after the others.
The door slid shut with a soft thud and Hana stared up at the moon.
Pale light bathed her already pale skin.
It highlighted her cheeks and eyes, and to her skin it gave an beautiful, heavenly glow.
But despite looking similar to the angels described in the days old ancient Catholicism, she felt nothing but… well, nothing in her heart.
She was their Captain after all. She had to be strong.
She had to be a fixed point for all of them.
No emotional compromisation. No sleeping with your team. No getting attached to false Guardians and heroes.
No.
The mission, the mission against these terrible organizations had to come first.
She took a shaky breath and formed her resolve.
She'd never let another girl suffer what she had.
Never.
But as she smiled sadly at the moon, and as the trees swayed form a gentle wind, and the crickets chirped happily to the stars above, she failed to notice the soft glow of green far off in the distance.
The metal body perched on top of a shaded tree, his green glow low and concealed.
Genji watched as the girl turned and headed inside the main house, thoroughly curious as to what was on her mind.
He had met her once, maybe twice.
She was an interesting woman indeed.
I stared at the ramp before me, the gears twisting and churning as my ship opened its belly to the beast.
Or more accurately to a frowning Tracer who was impatiently tapping her foot.
Honestly though, I had no idea why she seemed so pissed.
So I stepped forward, taking my helmet off the old fashioned way and resting it in the crook of my elbow.
"Now what?" I sighed, mostly out of annoyance.
She didn't reply and instead her glare intensified.
Now I'm no expert at women, but I can definitely tell you-
"Oh. Nathaniel sorry." she blinked twice and shook her head, "my head was in the clouds love, thinking bout the whole mess in Korea."
I nodded, visibly relaxing the moment I realized it wasn't me she was pissed at.
"Well," I stated moving past her and towards the back of the Hangar where a workbench and dozens of various tools laid about, "I can tell you Hana's fine, not really happy, but fine at least."
Also extremely miffed at me, but that was between us, nothing Overwatch needed to know about.
"I bet," she leaned against a pile of old tires, courtesy of Winston, "we already talked with the general though. Finalized the whole details about operation 'Hana Song being used as bait."
I tilted my head, and my armor disappeared with a flash before I turned to lean against the workbench, "you don't agree now?"
She sighed and pursed her lips, "Hana wasn't very excited about it, but then again, most of the plan was her idea. Then there's the fact the guys went to Japan do all place and dragged the new and improved Claire with them."
The dots connected and I smirked, "you don't trust the general?"
She grinned, obviously happy I figured it out, "course not. Its too much of coincidence, Claire showing up when Hana gets attacked? And almost seven months after she supposedly died? The general being so easy to convince in a matter of a day or two? Common love, I wasn't born yesterday."
I chuckled and pushed off the bench, heading towards the doors to the interior of the installation, "never knew you were the conspiracy type."
The feeling of her rolling her eyes engulfed the hangar, but with a flash she next to me as the doors to the bases interior slid open.
"I'm not, but the worlds been in shambles for a while love, and we're small right now. Would it really be surprising if someone tried to make a fast one right under our noses.?"
Honestly, I didn't know.
Sure there was internal strife back home, even between us Guardians, but nothing like this worlds. For the most part we just worried about survival.
Of course there were the crazies we had dealt with every now and then, but they didn't count.
I sighed before a reply left my throat, "honestly, I don't know. Where I came from… we didn't worry so much about this kind of stuff.'
My boots echoed off the metal floor as we passed the gym and mess, the wide halls seemingly swallowing even the sound of our breath as we went.
"What do you mean?" she asked, her voice soft and eyes filled with both curiosity and sadness.
I pursed my lips.
She knew about where I was from obviously, but I had only told her a summary; basically , I told her and Winston that I was from another Earth, from the year 2967, but my Earth had not history of Overwatch or the Omnic war.
The revelation had allowed them to both agree with our, mine and Digs, assessment that we were in a parallel reality.
However, we hadn't told them everything.
About the darkness.
Why would we? There was no darkness here, nothing for them to fear, so why torment them with the fear of what could be?
I shook my head, "my world, my…. people, we just tried to survive you know? We fought, and bled, and well, died, to ensure the last of humanity could live."
"The last of humanity?" She bit her lip in concern, and I chuckled, "yeah, but that hasn't happened here. Should've seen my face when I first saw Rio. Thought I was going crazy."
She grinned at that, "thought?"
"Cheeky fucker."
She snickered.
Then as we came to an intersection within the base, my room only a few doors down, she blinked in front of me and held up a hand, her other one pointing to my right which was towards Winston's lab snd office area, thing.
"What?" I asked, looking between her and the way she was pointing.
"Big guys got an op for ya. Me and Mei are heading out to Canada to look at some… disturbing data she found, but the big guy needs you for something apparently. Didn't tell me, but I didn't ask." She shrugged with a smile, she blinked behind me, and-
Whack!
My eyes went wide and I jumped as the force of the slap on my back thoughtless surprised me.
"Don't be a brat." She gave me a sweet smile, then was gone with a flash of blue.
I frowned, more from her teasing than anything else.
So with a huff I spun on my heel and started down the right hall, towards Winston's lab.
The journey was rather short, after all, the barracks were underneath the mountain, and his lab was built right onto the side of it, so it was maybe, like a two minute walk at most?
Granted it felt longer since there was nothing but empty room, an empty lounge, an empty simulator, an empty lab…. well, you get the point.
I really did wonder who else was here. I knew only a handful of agents had been present in Seoul just a day ago, and there were the rest like Reinhardt who had been on separate missions, but other than that…
How many agents did Overwatch have?
Hell, how much personal did we have?
It was still like a ghost town here…
Steels doors greeted me as the entrance to Winston's lab, and I stepped past them as the resident AI, Athena, welcomed me with a chippy, "welcome Nathaniel. Hope you're not planning on destroy anymore bases soon."
I rolled my eyes.
Imagine my joy at learning I now had TWO, sassy AI's to deal with.
Just my luck.
I walked to the stairs, briefly studying the room with a tire hanging from the ceiling, and turned to see the ape typing away at his computer, several jars of peanut butter laying on the desk beside him.
"We run out of peanut butter yet?" I asked, only slightly amused.
"Ha, ha. Very funny, Nathaniel." He huffed with clear annoyance.
Having achieved my goal I smirked and stepped through the doorway and into his office, my eyes immediately drawn to the screens.
Considering he didn't instantly shut them off, I was assuming it was either unimportant, or that he trusted me enough to see what it was he was working on.
Winston turned to me, simultaneously turning the screen to face me.
It was picture of some city.
It looked like the desert sun was setting, and if my eyes aren't truthful then it the building looked… almost smooth, and tall. Not to mention them were irradiated with blue light and dark peach walls.
I narrowed my eyes at the ape, "its a city?"
The ape smirked, "Oasis. Heard of it?"
My eyes went wide.
Of course I had. It was the pinnacle of technology on the Eastern hemisphere, surpassing even Seoul in its technological advances.
"What about it?"
"You are too accompany Angela here for the next month while she works with local doctors on the outbreak of Zika-koi, and to recruit some of their best to our cause."
My face dropped, "I am not a baby-"
He sighed and held up a hand which urged me to stop.
He rubbed his eyebrows, the exhaustion briefly visible on face before being shoved back behind determination, "I know, already adamant about being able to take care of herself. But, we know Talon is after us. Right now, the last thing any of us need to is be anywhere alone. So, I'm sending two agents out for every mission, and considering how dangerous Oasis has been lately, I don't want Angela alone there."
"Dangerous how?" I asked leaning against a wall as my curiosity got the better of me.
The Ape shook his head as he slid off his tire and stretched his arms, 'cracks' echoing off the wall as his joints popped.
He shook his head with a yawn, K9s on full display before he relaxed and continued, "kids have been disappearing off the streets. Kids from all backgrounds too."
He grabbed a folder from his desk, and handed it to me.
"Aside from protecting Angela," he stepped past me and headed towards the stairs, to which I followed, "I want you to look into this if you can."
I briefly opened the folder and glanced through the images of kids.
None of them were familiar.
"What does this-"
"Two of these disappeared seven months ago. A son and daughter of a high roller. They just reappeared today. Not a single thing wrong with them."
I blinked, "weird…"
"Exactly. They don't even remember what happened, complete memory loss. I want you to find out what happened. We don't need another La Croix."
I nodded, having learned a while back about the purple assassins origins.
Its sad as hell, but I'd still put a bullet in her head.
"So two missions in one? Which is my priority?" I asked, slipping the folder under my arm.
"Angela. We can't afford to lose her. I know you two aren't… close, but we need you to work together."
I frowned as we hit the first floor of the lab, "all right, but what about Hana? I figured I'd be the one to watch over her considering you guys sent me to see how she was after the whole attack."
The Ape walked up to the holotable, "normally yes. But Genji's already in Japan for a mission, so it's more convenient for him to do both."
I nodded, though for whatever reason, my eyebrow twitched.
"You and Angela leave in two hours," he turned to me as he powdered up the table, "any questions?"
I thought for a second.
"On a scale of one to ten, how much does Angela hate me?"
The Ape laughed.
"Solid eight."
"Damn."
I stared out the window, genuinely curious about the shining jewel that was Oasis.
Its buildings were large, and valiant. Shining silver coated the walls and foundations, and stainless windows reflected the light of the sun back into the void. Massive highways, all shining with silver roads and holographic dividers, cars that floated halve the silver, and vastly more lashive vehicles floating through the sky towards the multitude of buildings that all reached to the heavens.
Now I knew a little about religion, wasn't one for it myself, but I'm do remember something about the tower of Babylon, and how God struck the tower and sent it down. Something like that.
Either way… this sight, well…
I can't help but feel like all this is place..
It's just another tower of Babylon.
"Beautiful isn't it?"
I blinked and spared a glance at the girl besides me.
It wasn't mercy, it was a brunette, a really, REALLY, good looking girl in tight jeans and a gray blouse. She had green eyes, and light brown skin, and from the slight lisp in her accent I knew she was from the Southern States.
"It is." I nodded with half a smile, turning back to the city below, the buildings growing larger as our plane descended towards the airport.
I sighed softly then added, "it reminds me of home."
"From New York? Took you as a city boy." The girl added from my right and I couldn't help but smirk.
I looked back at her, "and you farm girl?"
She narrowed her eye and gave a fake gasp, "it's not a farm, it's a ranch thank you."
I chuckled and leaned back in my chair, "and what exactly is a ranch girl doing in the Middle East?"
With a devised grin she crossed her arms, "what's a city boy doing in the east?"
Again I laughed, "touché."
She grinned and grabbed the backpack at her feet. She hefted it up and pulled out a book.
The title was… well some bigs words about anatomy.
"I'm here for clinicals at Oasis Providence for my masters."
I furrowed my brow why did that name…. oh damn. It where Angela was going to be helping at!
I nodded, "awesome, I'm actually here with my cousin Angela. She's on some doctoral visit to-"
"Oh my lord," she gasped, clapping her hands together with a gasp, "please tell me you're related to Dr. Ziegler? Everyone knows she's coming to help, not to mention the fact she's speaking at the NTM convention as a guest of honor!"
Internally I cringed, instantly recognizing the fangirl type as she lit up like a firecracker.
Oh yeah, don't forget my anger though. No one told me about any convention.
Guess either Winston or Mercy forgot to mention that. Figures.
Still, I tried to keep the annoyance down as I replied, "yeah, came along to see the golden city for myself."
I gestured to the window.
She grinned wildly, "how amazing! She must be truly a wonderful person to know!"
"She is." I lied straight through the glowing grin on my face, and the woman leaned back in her chair, partially turning to me to speak.
My heart steeled itself for her inevitable questioning about Angela.
"So what exactly are you here for? No way you just came along with Dr. Ziegler for fun."
She leaned on her hand and studied me with a soft smile, patiently waiting for my response.
I lightly scoffed, staring at her with true bewilderment as I thought of a response.
Obviously I couldn't say I was involved with Overwatch, and though Angela was a well known operative and doctor of the peace keeping organization, I was basically under cover.
Nobody knew my face really, unless they somehow pulled my face from when Hana and I were in disguise seven months ago.
But Dig and I made sure to keep an eye out on the deep web and all sorts of conspiracy sights just in case.
So far, nada.
But Winston had pulled out all the stops for this op. For being a scientist, and a general Boy Scout, he definitely knew how to hide under the radar.
So I smiled back and chuckled, making it seem like she had read through me, "well, I won't lie, the Tyson museum has always caught my eye and I'd been planning on coming here alone then I heard about Angie coming, so I figured I'd tag along."
"Fine don't tell me." She smirked
I rolled my eyes, "already judging me and we barely met."
It was her turn to laugh and she feigned offense, "now, how rude to accuse a proper lady of such things."
I chuckled and-
Thunk!
The plane bounced an inch as it's tires meet the pavement, and I spared another glance out the window as we rolled on the runway towards the airport.
Normally not one to gawk, I was still truly bewildered by the sheer elegance and power displayed by the creators of this city.
I didn't know their names, but Tracer had sent me an info pack about the so called, Council, that controlled Oasis. It was sort of a city state, not be;ongoing to any one country and instead pulling talent, funding, and trade from every powerful country to create… well, an oasis.
A paradise.
But tuning in back to my conversation, I prepared a response then realized… I didn't know her name.
So I shook my head with a soft smile, "I just realized, I don't know you're name."
A look of realization crossed her face, "I am so sorry, my names Jasmine."
She stuck out her hand, and I shook it politely, "Nathaniel."
She smiled, "well, it's nice to meet you Nathaniel."
"Pleasure is all mine, Jasmine."
She opened her lips to reply, but the plane lurched to a stop-
Dig, log an official complaint for this pilot, courtesy of Overwatch.
Nate, I don't- I shut him out, and realized then the seat belt sign had turned off and Jasmine was undoing her own belt, preparing to stand and she looked at me and spoke, "it's been nice talking to you Nathaniel. If you're ever around the hospital, feel free to say hi. I'm sure Dr. Ziegler wouldn't mind."
HA! If only she knew…
"You know," I replied with a genuine smile, "I just might."
Her face brightened with a dazzling smile and pearly white teeth, "I'll hold you too that Nathaniel."
Then with that she stood, and opened the compartment above us, as I myself took off my own belt and stood, careful not to hurt my head on the bottom of the luggage compartments as I did so.
Jasmine, a smile still lingering on her face, looked at me then to the what I assumed was the luggage within the compartment.
"Which is yours?"
"The dark blue one."
"The one with-"
"Nathaniel." A sweet, yet managing voice caught my ear and I looked to our right, where I found Mercy standing in line, waiting for Jasmine to hand me my luggage with propel behind her.
I looked ahead, and saw that the first few rows of the plane had already emptied.
Huh.
Jasmine's eyes went wide at seeing the famous Overwatch doctor, but also realizing the traffic jam she was causing, she shook her head, "Sorry! Let me… agh."
She yanked out my luggage and handed it to me with an embarrassed smile simultaneously grabbing her own bag and somehow hanging it off her shoulder as she started down the aisle.
"Sorry everyone!" She said with grimace, right before she waved goodbye nad turned to exit the planes front, where the Captain and a Steward were talking.
I tried to wave back, but she was already gone by the time I managed to wriggle my way out of the seats into the isle, promptly exiting the plane with Angela closely trailing me.
"Who was she?" The Angel asked, eyes evaluating my every move and obviously waiting for my answer.
I shrugged, "her names Jasmine. Sweet girl, and one of your fan girls apparently."
Mercy frowned as we passed a restaurant within the airport, the walkways lined with marble and floored with a golden red carpet, "we're not here-"
"Calm down. I'm not trying to date her, or screw her, or whatever. We have a mission I get it."
I side stepped a family rushing by us, and spared a quick glance to the fountain in the middle of the gates waiting area, hard light swirling around it in fabulous designs of animals.
A jugar running through the jungle with a waterfall.
"Still, no need to jeopardize yourself through random conversations. We don't need her being targeted just by being acquainted with us." The woman replied as we circled the large fountain.
"Like how you jeopardize us by keeping the fact your a guess speaker at some convention from me?"
She narrowed her eyes at me for a moment before replying, "I was going to tell you."
"When Talons already shooting at you at the convention?"
"Which is exactly why we can't reveal anything to anyone. Not even an attractive young woman." She growled.
I rolled my eyes. "Talon may be one of the shittiest organizations in earth, but even they know targeting random civilians is putting more of a target on their back."
She shook her head with pursed lips, "they target civilians all the time. Do you think Hana was a random occurrence?"
"They targeted a high ranking military official. Hana may have been innocent, but she was of value. Plus, they interrogated her for info, so it was like a senseless murder."
The Fountain flowed brighter and transformed into a whale swimming through the ocean.
The doctor frowned and huffed, obviously annoyed, "yes, but do you think if Talons completely unafraid or attacking her, that they would actually be afraid of attacking a random civilian? One as low profiled as her?"
I sighed and bit my lip.
"All right, you have a point, but she was just friendly for God's sakes. Your saying we can't just be friendly and have a few friends outside Overwatch?"
Her frown deepened, "that's not what I'm saying Nathaniel. We need to be-"
"Careful, I get it." I growled and she openly rolled her eyes.
"Then think with your head." she stated with such a punch of finality, it both infuriated me and shut me up.
Then, there was a lion, stalking the bank of a lake.
We walked and as we drew near the airport exit, I watched as the floating head of a crocodile appeared in the water.
I wondered if the lion would see it, if the fountains holographic capabilities were capable of such a show.
But I never saw it.
We walked out of the airport, door silently sliding open as we made our way to curb, right to where a man stood before a shining silver car that hovered gently above the ground.
The fact he was holding a large poster board with Mercy's name on it, definitely assured it was our ride.
"Ms. Ziegler!" the driver called, his smile bright behind sunglasses and his well pressed suit.
Mercy didn't even blink, instead walking right up the man and embracing him as if he was an old friend.
"Its been a long time Su-Té." the woman smiled as the man chuckled and stepped back, politely gesturing to the car.
"It has, glad to see you're in one piece after that whole mess with the UN." He added as he popped the back door open for her.
She nodded silently and him his bag.
Su-Té glanced over to me as Angela got in the car, and extended a hand, a more reserved smile on his face.
"You must be the cousin. Pleasure, my name's Su-Té."
I nodded and shook politely, "Nathaniel."
He gestured to the back of the car and I got in after he took my bag.
Well pressed leather, finely polished windows, and perfect temperature controls.
I noticed there was a roll up window between the front and us.
Su-Té got in and the car started up with a soft rumble, far different than the growl of the normal cars I was used too in this world
"Su-Té can you take me to Providence?" Angela asked with a truly angelic smile.
He nodded and before he could reply I asked, "already? I was figuring we could-"
"Could you give us some privacy?" she asked, again that charming smile aimed at Su-Té.
The man complied and suddenly the window separating us and him rolled up.
The woman turned to me, "Nathaniel, Winston sent us here together, but I do not need you in my shadows. Go to the hotel, it's a room under my name, and stay there. We don't need to stay together every moment yes?"
Though her last sentence was phrased more like a question, it was without a doubt am order.
I leaned back, "one, you don't tell me what to do. Two, fine. I'll hang back, but dont bitch to me when you're in trouble and I'm not there to help because you kept me at the hotel."
She narrowed her gaze and me, but left my bait alone and turned away, "then we understand each other."
I huffed.
"Yeah. We do."
Stars.
Powerful, and beautiful all in one.
Their destiny was to burn for eons, and only when they had given life everything, would they flicker and fade. Yet, their light would always be seen. Traveling throughout the galaxies as it moved to in seen worlds.
They always had a purpose.
Hana wished she knew that kind of confidence.
She wanted to know what it was to have a sure purpose.
The task force and her current mission were good distractions.
But at the end of the day, as she leaned on the wooden railing of Marques' getaway house and stared to the heavens, she still wasn't sure what she was meant to do.
Before, well, maybe she did. She knew she was a Captain.
She had been a star too, and idol to people.
Yet now, she was here.
Threatened by Talon, at odds with some of Overwatch's finest, angry at teammates, confused and happy by her friends sudden reappearance, then nervous about that damn tablet in her bag.
Another group was after her.
But why?
What did she know or do to deserve this?
Did God hate her?
She shook her head, her hair loose around her face, framing it with beautiful delicacy that perfectly complemented the pale moonlight on her face.
She wasn't sure if she believed in God. Well, any God honestly. She knew other believed, some believed enough to commit genocide, and other who committed their lives to ideas solely of good purpose.
How could she be like them?
Beep.
She blinked, looking back into her room from the patio outside the back door of her room.
What had made that noise?
Her phone was on her, and she only brought her laptop which currently charging so it couldn't have been-
Beep.
Her eyes zeroed in on her bag, which was pushed against the corner of her room, far away from her futon.
She gulped and glanced around.
There was no one obviously, but she listened more than she looked.
And it was silent.
Her team had to be asleep. She glanced at her phone.
Hell, it was already two in the morning as it was.
She should've been asleep too, but her mind had been running and-
Beep.
She pursed her lips
It wasn't on. There was no way…
Before she knew it her feet were carrying her across the room, and she reached into her bag.
And with both surprise and mild expectation, she yanked out the tablet given to her by the white ninja dude, and saw it was on.
She grit her teeth as a purple, computerized skull, with lines of moving code creating its base structure, stared right jack at her.
Again, her eyes looked around, careful to see if anyone was listening or preparing to ambush her.
The place had cameras and motion sensors, courtesy of Marques's paranoid parents, but nothing was invincible.
Hell they'd gotten to her at-
Ding!
She looked down.
The skull was gone, replaced with purple text.
'Who do you trust?'
She pursed her lips.
"No one."
The message flashed and the tax changed.
'From times of silver and gold. The first of his kind. The most powerful of ours, but in the land foreign and not. Find that duller than pen, but separate from the world.'
She blinked, confused.
A riddle?
Really?
A/N
Hey guys! So no, this story is not dead. I've had a rough two months, girlfriend then no girlfriend, sick on and off, having to deal with finances, etc… it's been rough.
But fortunately the light at the end of the tunnel is near! In a good way.
So here we are the newest chapter! Not much action, as this arc is more espionage and character development over fights.
Things are developing, and there is PLENTY of foreshadowing in this chapter. Trust me, if you really tear it apart, you'll see the hints im throwing up.
So, here we get to see Jack and Ana looking for Hanzo still, but they ran into a grizzly scene. What could've done that as obviously it wasn't Nate.
Then we have Hana. Obviously drinking has its tolls, but uh Oh! Not only does it bring bad actions but it brings back repressed memories.
We haven't really had a chance to get into Hanas mind about what's happened in the past six months so here we get the details of her and Marques. We'll be exploring the things that happened in the six month gap with all the characters as we go.
We also see that Hana is slightly at odds with some of her team, and is generally confused about herself, in case that wasn't obvious from her getting drunkenly confused and pissed last chapter.
What does the riddle from Sombra mean?
Onto Nate, he didn't have a lot of time this chapter, but we some him meeting Jasmine, messing with Winston, and being at odds with Mercy as usual.
Don't worry, Mercys beef with him will be explained.
If you have any questions feel free to PM Me! Also for anyone who does, I have a few new ideas for this story that I need to run by some readers to see if it could logically play out.
Anyone, thanks for all the support guys!
Live long and prosper!
God bless!
- Metal4k