After their night together in downtown Zurich, both Kallista and Gabriel continued to work as if nothing had occurred to them. He made no motion or gesture to speak to her of that night and she the same. Weeks passed before Gabriel called the woman to his office.

"I understand that your central team is small but I have a recon mission that I need you and your team to take," Gabriel said as he pushed the datapad across his desk to her. Kallista looked from the man and to the datapad, before she picked it up, the information was succinct to the point it listed a date of departure.

"I suppose you would like my team to leave earlier than the date listed," Kallista questioned as she continued to glance through the mission brief.

"I don't know how long it will take you to gather a team but the sooner the better," Gabriel replied and leaned back in his chair with a sigh.

"Tired or troubled?" Kallista asked. She noted that he hesitated to answer her question, but the tone of his voice told her.

"Both," Gabriel replied. "Governments around the world are changing their view of Overwatch and because of that Overwatch is being barred or limited in certain countries. As you know Japan is one of the countries that have strict restrictions on Overwatch,"

"I'm aware of that and it is a bit strange. The sudden resistance against Overwatch and some agro against the agents as well, it's just so sudden," Kallista replied

"You're right…and that poses a problem," Gabriel sighed.

"I'll gather a team and update you as soon as I can," Kallista began as she placed the datapad on his desk and signed off on it, Gabriel nodded in approval.

"The earlier you get there the sooner you can return," Gabriel replied.

"Are you worried?" Kallista arched an eyebrow as she took the datapad.

"I am being cautious," He replied. "There is always a sense of dread when any Blackwatch agent goes on a mission, even recon missions can be dangerous if you're not prepared,"

"Of course, but if you're so worried then why—" Kallista began.

"Because I know that you are the best person for this mission," Gabriel replied before she could finish.

"I'm flattered," Kallista grinned slightly.

"Even though you botched your initial mission, you still did a good job," Gabriel added.

"I'm glad you remembered that thanks," Kallista scoffed and turned to exit the man's office.

"You're welcome," Gabriel said as the woman exited from his office. He sat in silence for a moment before a heavy sigh escaped from his lips.

He needed every Blackwatch agent he could get to carry out all the missions they were given, that included her. He wanted to keep her from the field, away from anything that might accelerate the serum in her despite the fact that the serum had already done its damage within her. He knew that he wouldn't be able to keep her from the field but made sure to give her and her team missions that low risk.

With her skills far exceeded some of the top-ranking agents in the field; he knew that he could trust her. It had barely been four years since she was forced into Blackwatch and under tight scrutiny but now she had grown into one of his most trusted agents.

He wondered if it was because of their moments of intimacy that made him care about her more, or the fact that she had been tested on as he or just her natural charm that made him gravitate to her. Even with those thoughts, there were always what-ifs about worst-case scenarios while on missions that usually ended bitterly.

With her attention focused on the datapad in her hands, she could tell that this recon and now extraction mission was important to the man. In addition to the importance of the mission, she could understand how the man felt about the new imposing restrictions of that Overwatch faced. The restrictions affected the facing side of the foundation, Overwatch and put even more strain and secrecy on the Blackwatch agents in these countries.

There would be reassignments and less communication to those that would be required to stay and more, she placed the datapad under her arm as she reached in her back pocket and took out her cellphone to make notes of what she would need to address once she returned from the mission. She nudged open a door as she passed through the main Overwatch building and made her way to a code activated elevator that would lead her to the lower floors of the Overwatch building. When the elevator doors open she stumbled over her own foot and crashed into the back wall of the elevator and dropped everything in her hands.

"F-fuck…" Kallista choked as she grasped the right side of her head. Through her blurred vision, she saw the elevator doors close effectively blocking anyone from seeing her in the elevator beside the security camera.

Another painful migraine, some were fleeting, some were persistent and left her with temporary blindness, nose bleeds, or just left her disoriented and unable to function at full capacity. The pain was numbing but she knew that she had to will herself through the pain and complete the mission that was given to her.

She steadied herself as much as she could, squinted at the neon blue numbers and managed to input her code to have the elevator move. Any complaint or mention of this she knew that she would be taken off of the mission with no hesitation, she needed to push through.

Her vision now nearly colorless, she reached down and picked up the cellphone and the datapad she had dropped earlier. She remembered her check-up with Angela and some of the adverse side effects that came with this new condition – color loss, blindness, migraines, appetite loss and more.

With the datapad and cell phone in her hands, Kallista braced herself against the back wall of the elevator again as she attempted steady her breaths. She needed to be calm, she needed to recollect herself, anything that would get her through this. There were no room for mistakes on this mission or any mission she was given.


It took Kallista a day to find her team and less than a day to arrive in Lithuania. They had already set up their recon checkpoint and had already sent information back to HQ. Gabriel had taken over a conference room and kept an eye on the information that was being fed to the Blackwatch Intel department.

There was something about the mission that bothered him, perhaps it was the information, perhaps, the location but there was something he couldn't exactly put his finger on.

"Look at you...keeping an eye on the mission…" Morrison commented as he leaned on the doorsill.

"Don't you have things to do, like important things?" Gabriel asked as he continued to look at the information on the holographic screens in front of him.

"I do and I am," Morrison replied and walked further into the mission room. "This mission is just as important for Overwatch as it is for Blackwatch…"

Gabriel sighed quietly as he turned to the man next to him.

"Then you already know what I'm looking at then," Gabriel began.

"Of course. It's been a day, right? Any significant information yet?" Morrison questioned as he too looked at the screens of information.

"Not yet," Gabriel replied.

"That could be a good thing or a bad thing…but you gave this mission to Kallista didn't you?" Morrison questioned.

"I gave it to one of the best agents I have here, yes," Gabriel replied.

"You didn't have to be so stiff about it…I was just asking" Morrison chuckled. Gabriel scoffed.

"I hope she's able to extract information about this so-called new group Null Sector…but it's just all rumors now," Morrison began quietly.

"We can only hope it's just a rumor. Our hands are filled with Talon and other Anti-Omnic groups around the world…surprisingly," Gabriel replied.

Through their watchful eye on the organization called Talon, there were brief rumors of a group called Null Sector that seemed to incite Anti-Omnic rhetoric around the world but had connections with the now-defunct Ominiums around the world and Talon itself.

But all of this was hearsay and no evidence to confirm if the rumors were true but Overwatch let alone Blackwatch.

"They wanted our help, we extended our hand and now they are biting the hand that helped them," Gabriel added.

"That may be true, but it is in Overwatch's best interest to step back and allow the individual governments to take control," Morrison replied.

"For how long? Until shit goes downhill and we're called in because they can't handle it anymore?" Gabriel scoffed.

"Gabriel," Morrison sighed. "You said it yourself. Overwatch is not the police of the world…this is no different even if they are in the wrong,"

A strained silence fell between the two men at the mention of the changing view of Overwatch around the world.

"…If anything changes or If you need me…you know where to find me," Morrison said as he turned heel and headed for the exit of the mission room.

"Yeah," Gabriel replied gruffly as he kept his attention to the live updates on the mission in front of him.

The mission was expected to take three days, but with Kallista's expertise, he was hopeful that it would take less. He trusted her enough to give her this mission, he trusted her skills it was just a matter of time until she would return and be safe.

Before she left, he checked over her gear, something he used to do for Jesse and Natalie when they first joined, he did the same for her. It put his mind at ease knowing that he checked her gear and that everything was as it should be and that it would protect her to some extent. Right before she set off he gave her something to bring back to him. He knew it was strange of him but the look on the woman's face was more than worth it to him.

A heavy sigh slipped from his lips as he took a seat and took his cell phone from his hoodie jacket to check his messages and updates from other messages.

"Commander Reyes,"

Gabriel glanced over his shoulder at the man who stood in the doorway and quickly walked over to him, it was Aleksander. Aleks quickly glanced at the holographic screens in front of Gabriel and noticed the mission to Lithuania was front and centered.

"Aleks, what is it?" Gabriel said as he looked up from his cellphone. Gabriel saw the younger man hesitate before he spoke.

"Sir, we have a bit of a problem," Aleks began.

"Explain," Gabriel placed his cellphone face down on the table.

In a shift moment, Aleks saw his commander's demeanor change. Void of emotion, whiskey-colored eyes focused solely on him. This was normally his expression but it threw him off guard, especially because his expression seemed to be more relaxed.

"Explain," Gabriel said again, this time firmer.

Aleks knew that he had to tell the man regardless; he was head of the department while Kallista was gone. Everyone in the Intel department was none the least shocked at Reyes' stress at sending Kallista on a mission in her condition and to tell him the bad news, who knows what the man might do.

She was his trump card.

She was important to him regardless if he denied it.

"We lost contact with the recon group in Lithuania. We tried to establish an emergency connection line but failed, we can only assume that the group was ambushed," Aleks began. Almost instantly Gabriel stood and was on the move to the Intel office, Aleks followed after him.

"Ambushed? How long ago? What's their status? Tell me," Gabriel began a rapid-fire of questions as he hurried from the mission room.

"Yes Sir, we lost contact 4 hours ago, located their last location, attempted to establish an emergency line—"


The pain in the back of her head jolted her awake, her memory of just moments before burred. Kallista slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was clouded, foggy as she tried to focus on the figure in front of her and the room that she was in. The room seemed to be an empty warehouse, the hum of the generators nearby seemed to echo, unfamiliar muffled voices from somewhere she couldn't determine and wouldn't have the time to figure it out. Her thoughts were shaken as a hand slapped her across her face, in shock Kallista gasped.

"Rise and shine sweetheart, you've got some explaining to do,"'

Kallista blinked through the pain and focused on the masked man in front of her. There were no symbols of a group the man could possibly belong to on his clothes, the light above him also made it difficult to determine who they were.

"It looks like you're on a mission…no symbols or anything. Suspicious…" they began again. "Who are you? Are you with the government or…Overwatch?"

"Burn in hell," Kallista hissed.

There were chains were wrapped around her wrists as she hung partially suspended from the ceiling, her feet a few inches above the ground. The masked man chuckled as he circled around her.

"Oh, it seems like you're from Overwatch…the government here is a bit lacking…" they trailed off. "Perhaps you would like to share some information then?" They began as they ran the back of their gloved hand down her cheek. Kallista attempted to shake the man's hand off her, the unknown man laughed as he brushed a few strands of her hair from her face.

"I refuse," Kallista hissed.

She had no idea who the man worked for but they clearly knew who she worked for. She could only assume that the man worked for Talon or the rumored group that her missioned required her to look in. But on that mission, Kallista and her team had been separated by a blinding concussive grenade and during the chaos, she had been able to help an agent but was taken because of it.

She had no idea of the condition of her team, how long she had been missing or if Blackwatch was actively looking for her, she barely had her thoughts together.

"What a haughty British accent you have there...I'm impressed. If you help me, I can help you and be a little lenient with some things," he started.

"I'm the wrong person to be lenient with," Kallista sighed as she attempted to move. The man reached out to grasp her chin.

"You're so feisty, I like that," The man chuckled. Kallista spat at the man, the man struck her hard across the face.

"You need to understand your situation girl. I could kill you at a moment's notice, so it would be wise for you to answer my questions," the man said as he began circling around her again. Kallista scoffed at the man's threat and spat blood to the floor.

"I haven't even noticed. Piss off," Kallista murmured.

"One more time. Information now. Where is Overwatch's next strike planned?

"Good question," Kallista replied. He struck her again.

"Names and locations,"

"I don't know…," Kallista replied. Again he struck her.

"Overwatch terminal access points,"

"No," Kallista chuckled.

He struck her again and again. Blood dripped from her lips as she hung limply from the chains, the masked man grunted in annoyance as he wiped his bloodied gloves on a towel. Discarding the towel he turned his attention to the syringe that lay on the table behind her.

"I suppose I had too much hope for you to be cooperative with me. My mistake," the man said from behind her. His heavy footsteps echoed in her ear as he approached her from behind. He stood in front of her, an arm behind his back. He sighed heavily as he grasped her chin and turned her head to the side inspecting the wounds he caused to her face.

The man jerked Kallista's head to the side to prevent her from seeing what would come next. Kallista felt a quick sharp stab in the side of her neck, a syringe.

Immediately, Kallista began to struggle against the chains and the man to stop him as soon as she moved her body almost immediately her body became numb, limbs weak and heavy. Tears welled in her the corners of her eyes as blistering pain flooded her body, flooded her veins making the room spin around her.

A heavy fog clouded her mind attempting to drown out all of her searing sensation traveled through her limbs, clawing at her mind, strange shapes and colors filled her vision as she looked at the man.

"What...the fuck...did you do to me?" Kallista hissed as she felt her body slump against the chains as the thick stagnant fog continued to slither around her mind.

"It's an old method...with new components...this is a prototype truth serum," the man replied.

"W-What?" Kallista asked as her eyes drooped closed, her body was shutting down in reaction to the truth serum he injected in her.

A sharp slap across her face jolted her awake.

"Rise and Shine," the man chuckled.

Kallista sputtered blood as she tried to keep her eyes focused on the man in front of her. Her body could not keep up with the intense changes that happened within her body, one moment the scorching pain of fire in her veins, a second later bitter cold.

"Now let's try this again agent. Tell me what I want to know and I can help stop the pain," the masked man began as he cupped her chin.

"Y—You twat," Kallista hissed. The man scoffed at the woman's curse

"Charming…now from the top. Tell me where the Overwatch access points are located"

Kallista choked on her words as she felt her throat tighten from whatever he injected her with, tears welled in the corners of her eyes.

"Where are they?"

A wretched moan bubbled in her throat as everything around her began to overwhelm her. The colors began to blend with one another and sounds were muffled. The truth serum in her system forced her thoughts together, things that were clear were now hazy, her throat dry, her tongue swollen, It felt as if her throat was beginning to close.

"Well, agent? Where. Are. They?" the man asked. The truth serum willed her to comply with his request but she was determined to hold her tongue, deny him of any information he asked for as long as she could, against the pain that permeated her system and body and the against the physical pain he put her through.

"N-New Mexico..." Kallista blurted.

"America? What's in New Mexico, agent?" the man asked.

"Area…No-!" Kallista stammered as she stopped herself and suddenly fell into a fit of laughter. "D-Did you really think I ...would give you info that quickly..."

The man backhanded her again. Kallista spat blood as she tried to give the man the meanest look she could muster when suddenly the man's fist collided with her abdomen. Instantly she slumped against the chains and coughed blood.

"You want to spit blood hm? I'll give you a reason to spit more. Get me another syringe," the man barked to one of the guards by the door.

"Your stubbornness will get you killed girl," the man hissed as he tilted Kallista's head up to look at him, Kallista grinned at the man her vision was hazy but she could tell that the grin made him angry.

"I hope you can run fast...the wolf and his pack are coming," Kallista spat.

"The Strike Commander?" the man asked curious at her sudden bravado.

"You'll…see," Kallista replied, a small smile on her lips before darkness took her.


The floor was cold, her vision dark and gray with hints of vibrant colors on various objects in the warehouse. She had lost all of her senses as she laid on a cold and hard surface, parts of her body were numb, she felt empty. Everything around her no longer made sense, and she was on the verge of losing all sense of herself.

The soft hum of the generators in the building guided her into the empty void as her eyes slid closed.

"Kalli-"

"Kallista-!"

"Shit is she-"

"Shut up-"

"S-Sorry…"

"C'mon Kallista say something...anything..."

"...doya..." Kallista sputtered.

"This place is coming down, I swear,"

"Natalie, you know we have to follow orders," Idoya hissed

"Me follow orders? Not after this," Natalie growled.

Idoya clicked her tongue at the woman's brashness but knew that she wouldn't act as such while Reyes was on the field with them. The tattooed woman turned her attention back to Kallista nearly limp in her arms, she quickly looked over the woman for any gashes, cuts, wounds that could be healed with biotic gel. She noticed that the woman had barely moved nor has she opened her eyes. Worried, Idoya carefully took her pulse and sighed softly, her pulse was weak but it was still there.

"Dios mio," Idoya sighed in relief.

"Your favorite snake here...we found her,"

[Her condition?]

The two looked at each other silently, Natalie glanced at Kallista and then back to Idoya.

"She's breathing…" Natalie replied.

The entire team was restless about the rescue mission, they were losing time and her exact location had not yet been confirmed. Her disappearance was nearly at critical and led to the agent added to the list of those missing.

There was silence on the other side of their communication links, the two women noticed the long pause before the man responded to them.

[...Hold your position…]

"Understood," Natalie replied

"He sure does seem awfully calm, " Idoya commented.

"He's pissed, don't let that fool you," Natalie replied.

"I still have a lot to learn apparently," Idoya added as she half laughed.

"It takes time…and I—" Natalie began when Lyudmila's voice came through their earpieces.

[What is the extent of her injuries? Can she walk? ]

"That is a negative," Idoya replied.

[Is she awake? breathing?]

"She's breathing...her injuries are undeterminable…" Idoya replied as she looked at the woman. "I am not about internal injuries,"

"We used some of our biotic gel that we have for some of her external injuries…" Natalie trailed off.

The two women heard a soft sigh and followed by a few strings of Russian before Lyudmila's voice cut out.

"I should have restocked after my last mission, but I was just lazy," Natalie scoffed. "It was just by chance that I had some biotic gel with me,"

"I as well, although this is my first mission…" Idoya added.

In a matter of minutes, Gabriel quickly followed by Jesse entered the room. Gabriel was instantly over the unconscious woman.

"Did y'all have any trouble getting her?" Jesse asked as he looked around.

"Who do you think you're talking to? No," Natalie replied.

Idoya glanced over at Reyes as he knelt next to her, his eyes quickly scanned over the woman before he pulled off a glove and checked her pulse. He gently cupped her face to better examine the injuries to her face, cracked and bloodied lips, black eye, and lacerations. As he looked at her injuries his normally controlled anger waned, it flared, nearly exploded. Whoever had given her these injuries would pay tenfold.

"Kallista speak to me," Gabriel said softly as he gently caressed her bloodied face. Idoya watched silently as her battle-hardened commander gently caressed the woman's face, a side of him that she thought would never see.

"... "

"Kallista…c'mon..." Natalie urged.

"Answer me, Kallista," the man ordered firmly, dread began to spread through him. Although silent, Idoya watched and hoped that the woman would respond.

"Kalli-" Idoya began.

"...Re...yes…?" Kallista uttered the man's name almost inaudible from her lips. A sigh of relief washed over the group as she finally responded.

"Kallista we're here…stay with me. Jesse give me the blood analyzer," Gabriel ordered.

[Lobo...Bones checking in-]

[Hold your position]

Gabriel heard Lyudmila give an order as he quickly tended to the woman; Idoya carefully shifted the woman in her arms to allow Reyes to give her the care that she needed. He took the woman's arm and quickly found a vein, within seconds the small needle pierced her vein and took a sample of her blood. Both Idoya and Reyes noticed the lack of reaction.

"I'm going to check the perimeter. I'm too antsy," Natalie said as she quickly began to move around the warehouse.

"I'll check with you," Jesse added as he went the opposite direction. Gabriel remained silent as he looked at the small vial of dark crimson blood, a soft chime came from the small device that held the vial.

"She has a high amount of ethanol, scopolamine, 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, midazolam, flunitrazepam, sodium thiopental," Gabriel hissed. He knew exactly what the concoction was in her system, he had used it several times before, but now used it as a last resort.

[Fuck Gabi...they drugged her with truth serum?]

[Truth Serum?]

[They used truth serum on Kalli?!]

[That's what it sounds like…]

Malik, Citlali, Hayden and Lyudmila's voices echoed into the group's communication links.

"Linda. I'm transferring this information to you now. Send this information to Angela and prepare to give her treatment when we return to the carrier," Gabriel said as he quickly transferred the results and focused back to Kallista.

[Waiting for orders, Lobo]

"Kallista stay with us," Idoya said as she brushed some of the woman's hair from her face.

[It's temporary...but you can use your Adrenaline cocktail it should help until you return to the carrier.]

"Nat, Jesse, check the perimeter. We are leaving," Gabriel said as he took out a syringe full of an orange-colored concoction and quickly and as carefully as he could, injected the woman with the liquid, which was the first time he had seen her react.

Natalie and Jesse quickly returned over to Reyes and Idoya expectantly.

"An eye for an eye, right Reyes?" Natalie nonchalantly suggested.

"I like the sound of that, Nat," Jesse replied casually.

"How about we focus on getting Kallista out of here," Idoya reminded the two senior agents.

"It's up to Reyes," Jesse commented.

The three agents turned their attention to the man, his attention was focused on the woman in Idoya's arms.

"Magnus access the video feed in this place. I want the bastard that did this to her. Aleks make sure you take all the information you can from this place. We are bringing this place down," Gabriel said as he gently took Kallista from Idoya.

[You got it, boss]

[Understood]

Jesse, Natalie, and Idoya looked at the man surprised as they watched him carefully stand with the woman in his arms. Jesse and Natalie had worked long enough with the man that he was serious about the order he just gave.

"Idoya, you're with me until we reach outside, Lockdown, provide support," Gabriel continued to order his team.

"Understood," Idoya replied as she stood gun in hand.

"Let's go Nat," Jesse smirked.

"I'll see you at the extraction point, cowboy," Natalie replied as she darted off. Jesse chuckled a bit as he looked at the man, he knew that he was royally pissed and what he says goes.

"Well Alright, Alright, Alright," Jesse smirked.

[Understood.]

[Seriously Lobo?]

[ Well shit let's do this]

[Ayyy~! Time to fuck some shit up! Lo mejor está por venir...Talon…]

Various voices of the Blackwatch agents responded to the man's order. They all knew it was rare for him to give an order like this, they all knew what happened was unforgivable and was not to be excused so easily.


It was nearly 3 AM when Gabriel and his team returned; he when the dust had settled Morrison was there and expected updates on everything that had transpired. He expected there to be of a ruckus when they returned but instead greeted with orders being barked and the woman they went to rescue being rushed off to med bay with Gabriel in tow. He didn't know the extent of her injuries or what had happened but waited to find out later.

He was tired, they were tired, all he wanted to do is be in bed sleep but knew that sleep would come much later. It was 4 AM when Gabriel returned to his office with Morrison behind him.

"All of this just to rescue your Intel director…" Morrison commented tiredly.

"It was mission success, right? We didn't lose any information and we recovered what was lost. What of it?" Gabriel replied.

"You understand what I'm getting at right?" Morrison asked as he leaned onto his desk.

"Humor me. I haven't slept in almost 32 hours," Gabriel replied.

"You're attached to her," Morrison said bluntly. Gabriel leaned forward in his chair as he held Morrison's gaze.

"She's a fucking civilian Jack, no matter how much training she gets she'll never be an official agent. Gabriel started. "You forget that she was a well-known socialite. How would that look if her body was discovered and plastered all on television?"

Morrison sighed and crossed his arms.

"Sure. But you out of all of the agents to rush in YOU decide to hastily go and guns blazing into a possible Talon or Null Sector base to rescue her," Morrison commented.

"We were a little more tactful than you think," Gabriel replied, Morrison, frowned.

"Besides. I'm not about to let a good agent die on my watch...you and I both know this," Gabriel huffed.

"Please spare me. You're always so dramatic. Just admit it and I'll let it slide," Morrison sighed.

"Admit what?" Gabriel sighed as he leaned back into the chair.

"Admit it and I'll come up with some excuse for you to nearly break your neck to rescue her," Morrison sighed.

"Whatever you say," Gabriel said as he shrugged.

"You're still so stubborn. I'm not going to let this go that easily, Gabe. Not only did you risk the lives of your agents, but you also ignored the treaties and laws that prevent Overwatch let alone Blackwatch in countries being patrolled by the Russian government," Morrison began. " Not only that you barely had a solid plan to rescue her, how you cradled her in your arms...and you're telling me that you're not hooked on her,"

"I was doing my job and rescuing my agents, no one gets left behind," Gabriel replied. Morrison narrowed his eyes at the man and quickly glanced at the big blue numbers on the wall.

"It's 4:15 AM and I already can't stand you and your stubbornness," Morrison sighed tiredly.

"There's no off filter for that," the man replied.

"Your loss, I'll make sure to mention your name to Petras calls later," Morrison sighed again. "Anyway… when was the last time you checked in on your Intel director?" Morrison questioned.

"You're giving her a nickname? I'm sure she'd love that. I checked in on her three hours ago,"

"Is she ok? Any abnormalities?" Morrison asked.

"Nothing abnormal. She's recovering according to Angela...also she's getting a new addition to the Doctor's division?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes and soon. Seraphina Hasibuan. Excellent addition to the medical team, Angela, and a few others sought her out to join the Overwatch team. Really promising for what they need to do," Morrison said as he rubbed his temples.

"We're moving quickly...for once," Gabriel commented.

"He's an important asset. It would be a waste to wait any longer. You and I both know this," Morrison replied.

"You're actually listening to me for once. Wow. I'm impressed," Gabriel said

"Now...only if you would do the same for me," Morrison chuckled.

"For some things," Gabriel yawned.

"Alright, I'm going to bed…I need some type of energy to deal with the shit storm that will come from this," Morrison said as he moved towards the door to the man's office.

"I clean up after you all the time boy scout," Gabriel replied.

"Shut up and go see your Intel director," Morrison huffed.

"Sounds like someone is butthurt," Gabriel said chuckled as he watched the man.

"Get some rest you idiot," Morrison said as he exited from the office.

A few minutes after the man left his office Gabriel stood and quickly exited his office and headed to the med bay.

"You still haven't slept yet, Commander Reyes?" Angela's voice called out to him.

"Not yet...I wanted to check in on her again...you know why," Gabriel said.

"I suppose...but I am fully capable of taking care of her while you rest," Angela replied.

"That is true...but…" Gabriel started.

"Yes. Yes. I know," Angela chuckled.

"How is she?" Gabriel asked and guided the focus of the conversation. Angela slouched in her chair and sighed heavily.

"She's gonna be fine Gabriel...her body just needs to metabolize the remnants of the drug and she may possibly need a cleanse afterward. She has a few bruised bones, contusions...just a bit beat up," Angela sighed.

"Yeah..." Gabriel replied.

"I can say that I am glad that you were able to get to her in time. If you were a day later, she would have died a not so nice slow death from the poisoning," Angela commented. Gabriel crossed his arms as he looked at the slouching woman.

"That's not what I wanted to hear Angie," Gabriel sighed.

"Eine minute Gabriel, the point is that you saved her," Angela quickly followed up. Gabriel sighed again as he looked at Kallista resting on one of the many empty beds in the woman's office.

"This is what her third time in my office? She's not the reckless kind but yet she's here...again," Angela commented.

"Unfortunately…." Gabriel commented.

"Yes...well...I plan to get some rest...I feel like death's incarnate," Angela giggled softly.

"Yeah. Get some rest slouching is bad for your posture," Gabriel chuckled.

"Says the one I'm always correcting," Angela replied.

"You're right...but it's unbecoming for a teacher to slouch in front of her student," Gabriel added.

"Oh hush, I am completely exhausted. Anyhoo, please do not stay up too long. Goodnight Gabriel," the woman started as she stood, stretching as she headed towards the door, leaving the two of them alone.

Quietly, Gabriel approached the woman looking at the stitches on her lips and bandages covering her arms, chest, and legs. The glimpse of gold glittered around her neck, he had given her his golden cross pendant, a gift from his mother a long time ago. It was a bittersweet moment, she was safe but badly hurt, it seemed to be no matter how much he tried to keep her away from danger it always came after her.

A reconnaissance gone wrong, their location was prime for what they needed to do. He remembered the apprehension he felt before he gave it over to her.

Gain information on a small base in Lithuania.

All of the recon missions she had conducted and participated in prepared her for this. With all of her training and skills he knew that she was best for this specific mission, he had to make a choice.

There was no other way around it, what happened, happened and now he had to deal with it. He knew that he had to wait until she recovered until she could debrief him on the mission. It was a success but left behind so many questions. He grimaced as he studied her bruised features.

"You did good Kallista…" Gabriel said in a hushed whisper.

"Info...did we get it?" Kallista's voice cracked. It took him a moment to respond to the woman, he was surprised that she was lucid enough to speak.

"I am being optimistic that we did," Gabriel replied softly.

"...ok," Kallista sighed

"You should rest," Gabriel whispered.

"I...heard you talking..." Kallista trailed off and mumbled incoherently. A soft sigh came from the woman as she seemingly drifted off to sleep, Gabriel watched and listened carefully

"I...guess I am alive..." Kallista mumbled.

"You are..." Gabriel trailed off

"Am I...going to be ok?" Kallista asked softly. He could hear the hesitation in her words, she was afraid.

"Yes. You need to heal up first but you'll be fine," Gabriel replied assuring her.

"That's good..." Kallista trailed off. "I need this face to make money,"

Gabriel smirked at the woman's lightheartedness despite her injuries. He was thankful that she was able to maintain lightheartedness through her pain, he was thankful they were able to rescue her and administrate care to her.

He was thankful to have her back.

"You need to rest," Gabriel chuckled softly and found himself gently brushing a piece of stray hair from her face. He quickly pulled away.

"Goodnight...Gabriel..."