*Gibraltar: Watchpoint*
Quillion listened, though half heartedly, as Lena recounts her story. He knows all of this already. She failed to save Mondatta from Widowmaker.
So what? This changes nothing.
"Then I saw it… She aimed the rifle right at me… And I just had to Recall back to the roof… Because I was scared…"
He did not want to react. He wanted to remain silent. He did not want to feel anything.
But her being scared caught his attention.
"Everyone is scared of getting shot" he said, half hating himself for engaging in conversation, emotionally exhausted.
"That's the thing… I wasn't scared about being shot… I was scared that my Chronal Accelerator will be damaged…" she sighed, tapping the blue orb on her chest.
He frowned at that. What's the difference?
"I still see his face you know… From time to time… When I wake up… When I eat… I could've saved him if I wasn't so scared…"
"You did not know he was there, that was one in a trillion shot"
"That's the worst part… Even if I knew… I would not have taken the bullet" she sniffed.
He looked at the door, hoping that someone will knock. The last thing he wants is someone losing their minds here with him.
"Have you ever thought what it's like? To be a ghost?" she whispered.
His mind went back to his army days where he had to shadow Omnics undetected for days but he bit his tongue to prevent giving a snarky remark.
He shook his head.
"It was horrible… Imagine seeing your best friends or worst enemy and neither can see you… Just when you think they did, you are pulled to a different time…"
She began shivering as the haunting memories came back, the suppressed fear seeping out.
"Part of me needed to save Mondatta… But I don't ever. Ever. Want to disappear again… And it is because of me… The world lost its best chance for peace…"
Her shaking become more evident as she tries to suppress her emotions.
"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" she gasped out.
"The world will heal itself. It just had a setback that's all" he said as he moved to open the door.
"It's my fault she died…"
"What did you say?" he said, frozen in place at her words.
"If only I didn't go for the terrorist and stayed like you said… She would still be alive…"
First, he was shocked. Then, he was angry. Monstrously angry. If anyone should be sorry, it should be him.
"This is all my fault… Because I wanted things for myself… I hurt everyone around me… Now she is dead because of me…"
Grabbing her by the scruff of her jacket, he threw her to the wall.
"Don't you ever say that again" he snarled, his hands never letting go.
"But it's all my fault!"
"You shut your mouth!"
It was never her fault.
The blame lies solely on him.
If he wasn't so arrogant, she would still be alive. If he took the bullet, she would still be alive. If he actually took his job seriously for once, she would still be alive. If…
A sharp pain in his head snapped him out of his blind rage. He blinked a few times and is shocked to see that Lena's face is now pale.
Quickly letting go, she collapsed to the floor, coughing and gasping for air, deep marks around her neck.
He stepped back, horrified at what he had done. He hurt her? With his own hands?
"I think you should go" he said, barely moving his numb lips.
She shook her head, massaging her neck, coughing as she tried to catch her breath.
"I need… To tell you something… Important…" she coughed.
He waited in the corner, worried that he will lose control again. After deep breaths, she stood back up and walked towards him.
"Don't" he said, looking away.
Without pause and to his shock, she hugged him.
"I am going to leave Overwatch tomorrow… I hope you will join me" she whispered into his ear.
"What?"
"Shh… Athena's listening"
He continued to stare at the wall and pat her in the back in acknowledgement.
"Lox will be waiting at the hangar at 7pm"
"Why?" he asked, barely moving his lips.
"To kill them all" she said, her words in a murderous tone.
He stood shocked.
"I want to see them dead Quil, I want you to help me. Help me kill them all" she continued.
"Lena… This is not you" he croaked out.
"I killed her… This is the only way to make it right…"
"If you need to kill the one responsible, I'm right here"
She shook her head.
"You did not know she was behind you, it is not your fault"
Those words crushed his heart, she must have read his report or reviewed a camera that Athena manage to have access to in the alley.
Not only she blames herself for Mondatta's death, now she is trying to take the blame away from him despite the similarities of the situation.
All because she tried to be a good person. It pained him just to think about a person like her to be corrupted by revenge.
"No. Of all people. She should never have that kind of blood on her hands" he thought.
"You don't want to do this" he said.
"I have to… They must pay for what they did"
"They must pay…" he repeated unconsciously, remembering his final words 30 years ago.
"You'll help me?" she asked hopefully.
"I'll help you kill them all, I can promise you that"
She nodded.
"Only take the essentials, Hana will provide us what we need when we land in Korea"
Breaking the hug, she looked at him in the eye
"Don't be haunted by your failures, Quil… You deserve a better life… Don't be like me…"
When the door shut behind her, he sat down, his head in his hands, pondering his options.
*The next day*
The night passed quickly and Quillion barely had any sleep and he began his day like any other.
Choosing the table in the corner, Quillion ate alone, going for seconds to ensure that he has enough energy for the rest of the day.
After breakfast he stood at attention in the Barracks, where his immediate superior informed him to clear out his room as he will be reinstated back to his old bunk with the others as he is now cleaner than before.
On his way back to his quarters, he saw that the door to the Engineering Room open and multiple voices are coming out from it.
"Alright, test number 5, proceed" he heard Winston said.
A quick flash of light and disappointed groans came out as a result.
"Test number 5, unsuccessful"
Peaking in, he saw that they are performing experiments with Pulse Bombs.
"Good day Corporal, looking for something?" an assistant asked, catching other's attention.
"No, nothing" he said quickly when he saw Winston's expression.
He was about to walk away when the scientist called out.
"Quillion, wait, I need to speak with you, everyone please leave"
They documented everything and left the room, leaving them alone.
"What you said yesterday was way out of line"
"Yeah, I know, I was… Insensitive'
"Insensitive is an understatement"
Quillion hung his head and said nothing.
"I know that it is a difficult time for you, so I should not have demanded an apology" Winston sighed, sitting down and grabbed a jar of peanut butter.
"What are you working on?"
"Oh, we are trying to make a secondary explosion after the first"
"Oh... How is it so far?"
"Not good enough. We ended up making a flashbang" Winston shrugged.
Quillion looked around and decided that packing can wait.
"You said that the Chronal Accelerator is a miracle of science, mind explaining it to me how it works?"
Winston chocked on his peanut butter.
"Why do you need to know something like that?"
"I just… Need a distraction from stuff, I would also like to volunteer to be in your Barrier Projector while you test those Pulse Bombs, be in your… Shoes for once"
Looking at him carefully, Winston smiled.
"Some general information wouldn't hurt I suppose"
*Gibraltar: Lena's Room*
Ensuring she packed everything most dear to her, Lena tore open her pack again to check. Pictures, chargers, a few change of clothes, and spare goggles littered the floor as she revised her checklist.
Despite packing throughout the night and morning, she still feels uncomfortable to leave the things unchecked.
"No second chances" she thought.
Every item she adds to the list is a gut wrenching decision.
"I guess I'm really going away"
The longest time she has been out on a mission was a couple of weeks. The longest time she was separated from the only family she knew was years before the Recall.
Now… Now she will leave it forever.
Wiping off the tears, she refocused on her need for revenge, which quickly floods out all other emotions.
Talon has taken everything away from her, all because of a momentary weakness on her part.
All her life she has tried to fight for the greater good, to do what is right, not realizing it is at the expense of her own. And she hated herself that she could not resist the temptation to think for herself unlike many others.
Her selfishness caused the death of Mondatta and millions of others. Now it caused the death of the one dearest to her. If someone else took her place the world would be better. If someone else is in her shoes, Emily would still be alive.
If she was not so weak, she would not have taken advantage of Quillion and making him help her buy the rings, breaking his heart in the progress.
All this leads to one inevitable conclusion. She has become the embodiment of the thing she hates. As long as she is alive, she will bring more suffering to others. As long as she breaths, more people will die.
She is an evil person.
"This will be my last mission" she swore.
The plan was simple.
Find where the Talon base is, destroy everything that's inside.
Already she could hear Quillion talking her out of a frontal assault, but he will follow her in whether he likes it or not.
Even if he does not, she will charge in alone.
And she does not plan to walk back out.
"He must secretly hate me now… Well, it is only appropriate if he see me die"
Checking her watch, she cursed when she realizes she still has a few more hours before their departure.
"Maybe I can grab some things from Angela… And possibly hint a goodbye"
Brigitte walked right into her when she blinked into existence, knocking her down.
"Lena?" Brigitte exclaimed.
"Come to help me out?" Torbjorn asked without looking up from his clipboard.
She looked around confusingly as the smell of melted metal and loud clanging noise met her.
"Where-?" she mumbled as Brigitte helped her to her feet.
She must've blinked into the Armory by mistake.
"Whoops, sorry. Wait. What do you mean help?"
"Thought Morrison sent you to help us find the thief?"
"What thief? What happened here, luv?"
"Someone came in and took a whole squad's worth of equipment" Torbjorn grumbled.
"Why don't you just ask Athena?"
"Someone covered all the cameras. Whoever the thief is, he or she knows our layout in and out"
"What did she take?"
"A container of ammunition, a handful of grenades, and a set of armor discs"
"Well… I hope you find her, cause I'm heading for the Medical Bay now"
She disappeared just when he grunted in acknowledgement.
"Brigitte, you just got back, go get some rest, I can take care of things here"
"I already told you papa, I'm fine"
*Gibraltar: Medical Bay*
"Hey Angie, all good here?"
"Hi Lena, I'm fine, how about you?" Angela asked before she could stop herself.
"What kind of question was that? She just buried Emily yesterday" she scolded herself.
Lena said nothing and sat on the chair across her desk, looking very uncomfortable.
"Maybe she just needed someone to be with?" Angela thought as she puts down her file and went to pour a cup of coffee for her.
She looked down and gasped.
"What?"
"Your neck" Angela said, setting down the coffee quickly and inspects the marks.
"Oh err… It's from the previous mission"
Angela frowned. How could they miss out such an important detail in the reports?
"How do you do it Angie…" Lena asked quietly as Angela apply some medicine.
"Do what?"
"How do you help people all the time and never want something in return?"
Angela shook her head and shrugged.
"I don't know… Just seeing someone healthy is its own reward"
"Don't you ever get tired though?"
"Everyday" she sighed, pushing the mug towards Lena.
Taking a sip, Lena fought hard to keep a straight face.
"Too strong? Strange, Genji assured me this is the perfect blend"
"How does he drink this stuff" Lena wondered.
"You got any beer?"
"You know just as well as I do that Overwatch does not have alcoholic beverages"
Nodding, Lena tried another sip and decided that the coffee is too strong for her.
"Angie… I am going on a mission and this will be a long one, I need some top up for my kit"
She saw Angela's eyes become fierce.
"The nerve!" she shouted and shove her chair away with a loud bang, making Lena jump.
"W-where are you going?"
"I am going to give Jack a piece of my mind!"
"What? Why?!" Lena shouted.
"After everything that's happened, he still sends you out? It's only been a day, Lena! You are not a machine!"
Panicking, Lena blocked the door.
"Out of the way Lena! He will not get away with this!"
"Angie, stop! I volunteered!"
"Don't defend him! He needs to stop treating us all like this!"
"Thank you, Angie! For everything!" Lena cried as she gave her a hug, deeply moved by her reaction. The thought that she will never see Angela again is too much to bear.
Gulping down her anger, Angela waited until Lena stopped crying, which thankfully, wasn't long.
"Let go now, I need to stop Jack from sending you out"
"No, please don't stop it, I need to do this"
"What you need is rest"
"I'm not a child, I know what I'm doing"
To her relief, she felt Angela soften.
"As Overwatch's head medical officer, I highly suggest you to stay here and rest for at least a week before you move out to the field again"
"Trust me, I will rest after this mission"
With a heavy heart, she nodded.
"Can I have the supplies now? Sorry to make it a rush for you"
"I can't, even if I wanted to"
"What? Why?"
"My stock was stolen last night and the rest has already been distributed for missions" she said, opening her cabinet behind her desk.
Blinking next to Angela, she saw that the cabinet is devoid of the usual Health Bottles and Biotic Fields.
"Athena, did anyone come and take things from this cabinet?" Angela called out.
"Only you, Dr Zigler" she responded.
Frowning, she went to the storeroom to check while Lena begin to realize something. First the Armory, now the Medical Bay.
"No way… It couldn't be him?" she thought.
She specifically told him to only take the bare essentials, what was he doing taking all these resources?
"Don't worry about it, I'm sure there's enough on the shuttle" Lena said, blinking away before Angela could protest.
"I hate it when she does that" she muttered, taking a sip of coffee.
"Nothing wrong with that" she concluded, smacking her lips.
*Gibraltar: Engineering Room*
"Hello Lena, come to inspect your Pulse Bombs?" Winston asked when she appeared in her corner of the room.
"Winston, did anything get stolen from here?"
"Stolen? Unfortunately, no, but I know that everyone else have things missing"
"Why would that be unfortunate? And who else?"
"Armory, Medical Bay, even things from Mei's lab is missing. Jack has sent a few people to investigate my lab a few times to look for the missing items"
"He thinks you stole them?" Lena exclaimed.
"No, but for procedure's sake he still called for investigation. In fact, they just left"
"Oh ok…"
"Did anything strange happen here though?"
Winston pondered for a while and shook his head.
"Nope, the only exciting thing was how Quillion reacted when he tried one of my Barrier Projectors. You should've seen his face when I threw a grenade at him when he is inside"
"Wait, he was here?"
"Yes, I wanted to have a talk with him"
"For how long?"
"About an hour"
"You guys talked for an hour?"
"Not exactly, he said he needed a distraction and he volunteered to be one of our subjects for the barrier tests"
Without another word she blinked to the chest where Winston keeps all his projectors.
"How many do you have in here?"
"Last count, around ten. Why?"
Throwing the lid open, she immediately started counting. To her relief, all ten were present.
"Phew…"
"You think Quillion is the thief?" he asked.
"No, no… I just… Needed a distraction as well… What else did he do here?"
"Nothing, after the tests, we cleaned up and he left"
"Did he say where he was going?"
"He said he was going back to pack. Something about being moved back to the Barracks"
"Right, got it. Thanks for everything Winston"
She was making her way back to the corner when she saw Winston opening the box.
"I just checked that big guy. It's all good"
"What can I say? I just need to see for myself and -"
She waited for him to finish the sentence before she blinks away but he stood there stunned.
"Something wrong?"
"Some of these are used discs"
"Sorry?"
"Someone took two charged discs and replaced them with used ones"
*Gibraltar: Hangar*
Looking at his watch, he saw that it is 5pm, a couple of hours before the original flight time.
"All loaded up?" Quillion asked as Lox inspects the cargo.
"Yup, all good"
"And you are sure you told no one? Because you know what happens if you told someone"
"Yes sir…" Lox said bitterly.
"Ready to receive us?" Quillion asked, tapping on his sunglasses.
The words 'Ready' flashed as a response.
"Alright Lox, time to fly"
"QUILLION ZERO!" a voice cried out.
"You told her?" he asked Lox.
"No! She must've figured it out!"
With little time to think, he shoved Lox into the shuttle and he stood guard at the entrance to meet her.
"What do you think you are doing?" she shouted, marching up towards him.
"Turn back Lieutenant, you don't want any part in this" he warned, pulling out his pistol and pointed at her, stopping her in her tracks.
"What do you think you are doing?" she asked again, shaking with anger.
"I can't let you do this"
"I can do whatever I bloody want to!"
"Which is why I must stop you"
"If you won't help me, get out of the way, I'll kill them myself" she threatened, her pistols popping out of their harnesses into her hands.
"That is not happening"
The engines activated and the shuttle began to shake.
"Ready for takeoff, Corporal" Lox called out.
But he did not move, nor did Lena, both staring at each other with the same thought in their mind.
Both had the need for revenge, but only one will leave this rock.
"Unauthorized takeoff, all personnel please proceed to the Hangar" Athena called out.
"Quil, please, we can still go together" she said, desperation taking over as they can hear a small crowd of people coming.
"Can't let you do that"
With that said, she Blinked.
Maximizing his Battle Rage, Quillion ducked just as Lena materialize in front of him, her pistol just barely missing his head.
She did not see the punch that sent her flying into the air but she knew she sustained a significant damage, forcing her to Recall.
Crack
Quillion still stands right in front of her, his expression blank.
"Didn't I Recall?" she thought.
She looked past him and saw that she was back where she was moments before she attacked.
"He must've jumped forwards"
Seeing an opportunity to get into the shuttle, she tried blinking forwards.
But nothing happened.
"What…?"
She looked down and screamed in terror.
He had buried his knife deep into her Chronal Accelerator, its light dying as the blade severed the precious wires that kept it running.
Twisting his wrist, the glass cracked even more.
"Stop! Quil stop!" she begged, but the damage is already done as her hands began gliding through his.
"Goodbye" he said before kicking her to the ground and sprinting back into the shuttle.
"Take off!" he roared.
Looking through the window he caught a glimpse of Lena in a fetus position on the floor before Winston and his team gathered around her.
"Why couldn't you just turn back…" he thought, punching the wall until his hands are fractured and bloody.
Pulling himself together, he bandaged his hand and make his way to the pilot seat up the stairs.
"How long?"
"About 6 hours"
"Good… Oh, don't waste time trying to contact any airbases, I have already removed all communications and tracker from this shuttle"
Winston, Angela and their respective teams gathered around Lena on the Hangar floor, frantically trying to secure her in the present.
Multiple hands flurried above her as they hold, wrench, secured, replace and release multiple gears and wires.
The Medical Team did not slack either, providing the whatever the Engineering team needs and helping wherever they can in the stabilization process.
For hours they worked and fatigue began to set in.
"Hang on Lena, we are almost done" Winston said, his hands never leaving the Accelerator.
Still riddled with shock, Lena wore a fearful face, staring straight ahead, her hand trying to grip onto Angela's as it keeps fading in and out.
"Can we move her yet?" one of them asked.
"No not yet, she is still fading" Winston said, trying to stay calm as he reattaches the severed wires.
"He knew exactly where to stab, just by talking with me he knew?" he thought, shuddering how dangerous Quillion may have become.
But now is not the time to think about that, now is the time to help Lena.
"Can you get it working?" Lena suddenly asked.
"Yes, but it will be a while before you can use it properly again"
She nodded and said no more for the remainder of the operation.
*Italy: Alps (A few hours later)*
"You sure that we can just leave it here?" Lox said, grunting as he pulls the ammunition cart behind him.
"I was assured by my contacts that this place is safe"
"If you say so" Lox said, looking around at the high peaks around them, fearful that an avalanche will fall on top of them.
Rifle at the ready, he followed the directions provided in the sunglasses that leads them straight into the wilderness, only resting when Lox has reached his limits, which was often.
Passing through multiple mounds of snow and seemingly random gaps, they finally made it to their destination.
Which is nothing more than a wall of rock.
"That's it? We travelled all this way just for this?" Lox complained, collapsing to the ground in exhaustion.
Ignoring him, Quillion moved forward and was about to touch the rock when a voice called out.
"That's far enough, monsieur"
Kneeling to the ground, Quillion scanned the horizon with his rifle but could not find the source of the voice.
"Chill Quillion, she's on my side" Sombra said, appearing in front of him.
"Whoa!" Lox shouted, tripping over the cart.
"Sombra"
"Tell me, did you know I was there or were you just guessing?"
He merely looked down and pointed to her feet in the snow.
"See? Told you he is more than just a fighter" Sombra said.
"I still think he is an amateur"
"Why?" Sombra asked with frustration.
Using her zipline, Widowmaker lowered herself down.
"Doesn't matter, as long as he can do what needs to be done" she said, landing gracefully.
"Just point me to the right direction and I will do the rest" Quillion said.
"I highly doubt you will succeed"
"We will discuss the plans with you tomorrow, now you need rest, follow us" Sombra said quickly as Quillion ball his fist.
Following them a certain distance, they entered a cave just as night fall around them, to which they immediately start a fire.
"Don't make yourselves too comfortable, we will only be here for the night" Sombra said as she threw them a blanket.
"I didn't sign up for this…" Lox muttered.
"Go ahead and rest, I'll take care of the fire" Quillion said, positioning himself in the entrance, unbothered by the cold.
"Nighty night boys, we'll come back for you tomorrow" Sombra said before disappearing, to Quillion's annoyance.
"Have we ever met her before?" Lox yawned.
"Why?"
"She just sounds… Awfully familiar…" he said before slipping to sleep, leaving Quillion alone with his thoughts.
A few snow mounds away, Sombra reappeared in front of Widowmaker who made a sniper's nest overseeing the whole mountain, a small heater next to her.
"Well you didn't make a good impression today"
"I merely told the truth"
Sombra sighed and lean against the snow.
"Common chica, you know I only hire the best, I hire you didn't I?"
"As long as you give me what I want, I will help you"
"Trust me, after taking Talon down, I will give you everything you need on Lacrox"
"Why do you want to destroy Talon? What's in it for you?"
"For that story, you need to wait for another day"
Rolling her eyes, Widowmaker focuses her attention on the mountains.
"Why? Starting to feel some regrets about this now?"
"I feel nothing, as long as I get the kill"
"Yeah obviously, like, couldn't you get a bigger heater?" Sombra complained, eyeing the tiny machine.
"Non"
Shrugging, Sombra snuggled herself against Widowmaker.
"Estas jugando conmigo, no?" she said, moving away from her.
"What?"
"Your body is ice cold!"
"Tell me something I don't know"
Just when Sombra was about to sleep, Widowmaker spoke again.
"Do you really think he can help us?"
"You saw him beat Sigma and Moira's little pet, what do you think?"
"But he still failed the mission"
Letting out a long sigh, Sombra shrugged.
"I doubt he will disappoint us again, he no longer has the innocent look in his eyes"
"If he is as good as we hope, then make sure you will never tell him who pulled the trigger"
"Why? Scared he will beat you?"
"Unless if I tell him I was merely following your instructions first"
This is the end of Act 2, which means there are 25 more chapters to go (or less depending on quality of the ideas).
Just as an announcement I am going to take a week's break so the next chapter will be on the 28th April.
Thank you all for following this story and I hope that it will continue to entertain you guys as we enter the final Act.
Stay healthy, stay safe.
Have a good day :)