Going from stories Jack had heard secondhand only from the like of Reinhardt and other Crusaders that he'd met during the Omnic Crisis, Eichenwalde was a thing to behold. It was rich in culture, be it music, art, good, or drink. Good, generous people lived there and always did their best to make things better for the Crusaders that protected the town. It was meant to be a place that would go untouched by the war, given how many civilians called the town their home. However, that was not to be.
Where there once had been homes and stores now only laid shells of their former selves. No surface had gone without damage when the omnics attacked. Walls riddled with bullet holes, brown stains of dry blood, houses that had tumbled after receiving too much damage, and bullet casings littering the streets painted a grim picture of what had happened more than twenty years ago. The glimmer of hope he could see where the numerous notices plastered on every single door and window that still remained, telling the citizens to leave the area for an impending attack. But people were stubborn, no matter where they were from. How many had stayed behind? How many had died? As Jack and Ana made their way around town, he could see a toy store and its products in a few of the houses they would check out.
It was haunting to walk around, trying their best not to disturb anything. Detroit had suffered a similar fate, but the feelings he got from there and Eichenwalde were completely different somehow. This was the type of place one would go to to retire or raise a family. It had a "homely" feel to it that was impossible to get in the city. So it was that the defenders of the town became its doom. Would the omnics bother with a place like this if it wasn't a station for Crusaders? Eventually they would. Then again, because the Crusaders stopped the omnics here, Stuttgart would have been taken before the German Army could defend it.
Jack pushed all thoughts aside as they entered yet another building. So far, they hadn't even heard so much as a leaf falling on the ground. It was quite literally a ghost town. In the end, Zenyatta wasn't able to get a better read on the Bastion unit's exact location. That meant that Ana and Jack needed to check every single building, which was taking a lot more time given that there were fresh tracks and disturbances on the dust just about everywhere. The building they were in was a small instrument shop. There were guitar on one wall, a variety of wind instruments on another, bandoneons of all kinds close to the door, and pianos lined up side by side on the back of the store. Ana had gone upstairs, while Jack checked the first level. There wasn't much for him to investigate. Apart from some of the instruments showing signs that they'd been handled recently, there was nothing more for him to go off of.
He walked towards one of the pianos, laying his fingers on exposed keys that had yellowed over the years. Jack quickly learned that they were in working condition as he slowly pressed down on a single key. The humming faded out after a few seconds, leaving Jack to think about how out of tune the piano was just as Ana made her way downstairs.
"It's been some time since I last heard you play," she said as she joined him by the piano.
"The guitar was more my thing. Reinhardt liked playing the piano. He was much better, especially at the bar. Quite a hit with everyone." The two of them smiled at the memory. Jack could still picture those days. Even during the Omnic Crisis, Reinhardt would always do one thing or another to try and lighten up the atmosphere. That was especially helpful when they had some down time, which was mostly spent drinking their sorrows away. Sometimes Jack would join in with a guitar and they would play a tune. Gabriel, Torbjorn, and Ana would join in to sing. Liao, well, she was too young to be drinking, so she usually spent her time fiddling with her camera instead. "Got us kicked out a couple of times too."
Ana chuckled, most likely already recalling the many times it happened. It was nice to remember those memories over thinking about everything else that happened during that time. Unfortunately, they had to move on. The building was cleared, and so they moved to the next, which happened to be the local tavern. There, right smack in the middle of the place, two rusty Bastions' remains were resting over some of the tables. Not even the tavern had been spared by the attack. The only thing that seemed out of place there were the small bouquets of flowers that were laid on top of the units.
"You think our guy did that?" Jack found himself asking as he examined the flowers. They were all from around the area. On their way to Eichenwalde, they'd seen many of their kind around the forest, and the closer they got to the center of town, destroyed Bastions and Walkers were also becoming more common to see.
"I don't think anyone else would leave flowers for a Bastion. Most people first saw them when they attacked," Ana reminded him as she leaned in on the bar to see what was on the other side. Jack wanted to point out that there was no way an omnic that size would hide from view behind a bar, but he was waved over by Ana before he had the chance. "Come take a look at this."
"Found something?" Jack walked to her side. He was expecting her to show her something, preferably a gun that had been left behind, but instead, she pointed at the bar itself. He looked at the worn out wood covered in dust, then at Ana, and then back at the surface. Ana sighed, cleaning up the wood with her sleeve. Reinhardt's name had been carved onto the bar. "Must've been his favorite spot to sit."
"He had a bad habit of doing it in our Watchpoints," Ana said, smiling fondly at Jack, who seemed surprised. "No one noticed until much later. I wonder if he still does it."
One day we can ask him. Jack wanted to say those words, but it was unlikely that they would ever see their friend again. With everything that had happened, it would be impossible to get anywhere near the Crusader without bringing attention to themselves, which meant someone would find out that they weren't actually dead like they were supposed to be. Too dangerous… but maybe someday.
They'd reached the town at dawn, and they had come up with no clue as to the location of the active Bastion unit. It was possible that from when Zenyatta first found out of its location to the point they reached the town, it could've left, losing itself in the woods. The sun was barely visible over the treetops anymore. The idea of spending a night in the town was unpleasant, considering everything that had happened there. Jack wasn't superstitious, but it didn't feel right to sleep in a place many called their last resting place. But thankfully, there would be no need for that, as they noticed something looking at them from atop the castle walls when they reached the bell tower in the middle of town.
Jack squinted, trying to get a better look. If it didn't move, he would've taken it as just another Bastion unit in town, but it was the fact that it kept moving its hand towards a bird that caught Ana and Jack's attention. The Bastion had the vantage point—with high ground and its weapons, if it started firing, they wouldn't stand much of a chance. As if hearing his thought, the Bastion turned its head slowly down towards them. There the three of them stood—four counting the bird that stood on the omnic's finger and chirped—as if waiting for another to make the first move. To be honest, Jack wasn't sure how they were supposed to proceed from there. He was glad to see that the Bastion in question was a recon unit. It was equipped with only one submachine gun instead of the usual two while in recon mode, but that was still one gun too many.
The light on the omnic's head started flickering from blue to red. That was an instant warning. Neither Jack nor Ana had to be told what would happen next. They'd fought the things too many times before during the Omnic Crisis to doubt their instinct of throwing themselves to cover behind the bell tower. Just as they entered its shadow, the bullets began whistling in the air. Guessing by the sound of them hitting the stone and concrete of the tower, the target was still in recon mode.
"How are we supposed to go against that thing?!" Jack asked Ana as they tried to stick as close to the ground as possible. Fragments of the wall behind them were falling on their shoulders and back, covering the body armor they'd been provided with—black for Ana and white for Jack—in a thin layer of dust. "Are we supposed to talk? I can barely hear myself talk as it is!"
"We don't have many options, Jack. We might as well give it a try." The two waited as the lead kept coming their way. When the firing stopped, likely so that the target could reload, Ana took her chance. She stood up and waved a hand out of cover, something that made all sorts of alarms go off in Jack's mind, but he had to grit his teeth and let her try. Ana's voice echoed enough that the target would have to hear her. "We mean no harm! We came here to talk with you!"
For a moment, to the surprised of both of them, it seemed that Ana's plan worked. It had enough time to reload and start shooting again, but it didn't happen. Still, Ana and Jack were both reluctant to get out of cover to face the target. It was a good step in the right direction… Until the familiar sound of it going into sentry two of them were forced to lay down on the ground completely. Jack tried to cover Ana with an arm, but if a bullet hit, it would easily go through his arm and her back.
"That backfired horribly," he told her as more and more chunks of wall came off and landed around them or on them. "Any other bright ideas?"
The Bastion unit stopped firing for what had to be no longer than a couple of seconds before it continued firing. For whatever reason, it was hell bent to kill them. It went with accordance to how Jack remembered them being during the Omnic Crisis. He'd seen his comrades being torn to shreds all around him by those things. The omnics didn't show mercy, nor would they ever back down even if one was to surrender themselves. Only the sound of a loud cracking broke him out. He turned back to look at the tower they were using as cover. It wasn't looking good. Any second it could collapse, burying the two ex-Overwatch operatives under the rubble. Jack lived through that experience once already, he wasn't about to let himself go through it again.
"We need to retreat," Jack told Ana. He pointed towards one of the buildings to their front-left. It looked like one of the least damaged one, showing few bullet holes on its facade. "We'll need to split up. You go to that building and I'll go to the left. I'm faster than you are, so I'll go first to act as a distraction. We know these buildings all have back doors, so we can meet up without entering the line of fire."
"I don't think splitting up is the best idea," Ana argued. "You are putting yourself in unnecessary risk, Jack!"
"We tried it your way," Jack kneeled, still trying to get as low to the ground, but getting ready to break into a sprint when the right moment showed itself. "Now we try mine." His words had a finality to them that reminded him of his time back at Overwatch. How many times had he given similar orders to others? Though he always instilled in new recruits that they shouldn't needlessly put themselves at risk, he did it all too often. But, in Jack's case, it always worked, be it because of luck, the Soldier Enhancement Program, or maybe because he always had a knack for reading the field. Ana had to know as well, for she fell silent and reluctantly followed Jack's lead. His hand was still on her back. Ana was no rookie, but giving someone a nudge as the order was given to move wouldn't hurt.
Through the sounds of whistling bullets and shattering concrete and stone, Jack's able to hear the 'click' of Bastion's ammo clip when the last bullet was fired. They only have a couple of seconds before it reloads, so he gives the signal to move. He's able to take no more than four steps out of cover when it starts shooting at him. He barely outran the fire, flinging himself against one of the windows on the building as to enter, given that he wouldn't have time to kick in a door. The glass shattered, allowing him entry. Had he not been wearing the special clothes given to him and Ana, some of the glass would've surely left a few cuts on him. The shooting stops once again. Thankfully, Ana made it out of there too. He could see her pressed against one of the walls of her building.
Suddenly the bell tower began to crumble down. The ground shook as the building collapsed, and the sound of the bell hitting the floor and bouncing left Jack's ears ringing. That seemed to be enough for the Bastion, as it sounded like it went back to Recon mode. Some faint beeping was going on when Jack turned on his comms device.
"That was close," Ana said, looking at him from across the street. "You know, for a man your age, you can still run very well, Jack."
"Must be all that stuff they pumped into me," Jack responded, not able to control the small smirk he was showing her. There was a good reason there hadn't been any talk to force him to stop entering the field back when he was still in Overwatch. Even Reinhardt's retirement was something that was a topic that came up a few years before it actually happened, and Jack fought against it for as long as he could, knowing that the man would never set down his armor if it wasn't on his own terms. "But enough screwing around. There's a mission to get done. Let's regroup and think of a better way to do this."
"As you say, Commander." Jack grunted as he rolled his eyes. Ana in turn laughed before heading towards the back of the building. Without having to worry about their well being, he took a better look at his surroundings. Though most of the lower levels of buildings around the town seemed to be dedicated to stores, this one was a house. The place looked like it probably did all those years ago before the Omnics attacked, minus the thick layer of dust covering every surface, of course. It was haunting. A newspaper laid crumbled up besides a recliner. A half empty glass of (muddy) water still sat neatly on top of a small coffee table. An unfinished sweater barely hung from the side of the couch. And some toys laid across the fireplace.
It was an all too familiar scene. How many times had he found himself in a similar place before? Dozens, at least. The pictures that hung on the wall told him everything he needed to know about the people that lived there. A couple that married young and started their family quickly, by the looks. Two daughters. A dog, though guessing by the small urn resting on top of the fireplace, it died at some point. It was all too familiar. It was what he wanted for himself. But that was before becoming a soldier. And he was glad he did, because had he married during the Omnic Crisis, then who's to say someone wouldn't have found themselves in his home, staring at the same scene, except the pictures on the wall would be of the Morrisons?
The middle-aged man closed his eyes, obscuring the room with the lack of the faint light coming from his optics. One deep, long breath was all it took. Had he found himself there only a few months before, would've he been able to control himself? Even when the Bastion shot at them, not once did he lose control. Then again, he'd always been able to keep himself calm in the battlefield. They may not have guns, but this too was a battlefield. Jack opened his eyes and reminded himself he had to keep moving.
The two humans were able to meet again a few minutes later. Their first move was to check if the target had changed positions while they weren't looking. Being careful not to be spotted in case it still held the high ground, Jack peeked from behind a corner. "It's clear," he informed her. "Could be searching for us."
"Or it could be looking to resupply," she suggested, which was true. With the amount of shots fired, its ammunition stock would be low. If it found ammo before, it would do it again. "Let's head to its last position for now."
Jack allowed her to take the lead. "And if we find it up there?"
"As I recall, you once fought one of them with your bare hands."
"I was in my twenties back then. Broke a few knuckles and fractured two fingers too, in case you forgot." Not because he had more strength, agility, and stamina than a normal human did it mean his body could withstand more punishment than an average man. His bones were not something out of comicbook—replaced by "adamantium" like that Wolverine fellow. The fact that what happened in Zurich left him clinging to life by a thread should've been proof enough of that.
Ana chuckled. "Ah, yes. I remember patching you up afterwards." They took a turn as they reached a set of stairs that would bring them up over the wall. "All but Reinhardt and Reyes thought it was a stupid move on your part. Reinhardt loved to tell that story to new recruits."
"Did he?" Jack asked, only half listening. They still needed to be alert, and with Ana already looking out for danger on their front, it was up to him to make sure they were covered on the back and sides. So far, there was no sign of the target. It was as if it vanished in an instant. It wasn't for nothing that the Ombiums produced Reckon units. The level of stealth they used couldn't be compared to that of an assault Bastion. "That explains why Tracer always bugged me to show her a few moves. I thought she was talking about boxing…"
It would've been impossible to miss the spot the target had been shooting at them from. Hundreds of bullet casings littered the floor to the point of almost covering it entirely. Some of the casings had been flattened, likely by the weight of the retreating omnic. Other than those footprints, there was nothing more for them to see. Jack moved past the spot, but stopped soon after when he didn't hear Ana following behind. Turning around, he found her staring at something over the edge of the wall, and guessing from the lack of shooting, it wasn't likely that she was looking at their target. "Found something?"
"There a bird's nest here," she told him, her brow furrowed as she kept staring downwards. Was she really stopping for a nest? "There are some eggs in it. It wasn't a spot a bird would make a nest on. It's barely holding on."
Why was she suddenly so worried about a birds nest? Jack leaned over the ledge to take a look himself. Sure enough, there it was. A nest that had most of it's weight balanced between the wall and a flag pole. Nothing special about it. "Forget about it. We need to keep moving unless we want to turn into Swiss cheese."
Clearly ignoring him, Ana leaned further out, most of her weight now on her stomach, which was on top of the ledge. Leaning any further would put her in danger. Jack took a quick look around to make sure they were clear. Ana was already reaching out a hand to reach the damned thing. "Ana, leave it be. We have more important things to worry about right now."
"The bird that laid those eggs wouldn't put a nest there," she began, her words coming out hoarse as she struggled to speak. "No mother would risk the life of her own children like that. I saw Bastion had a nest on it before it shot at us. I'm sure that's the nest, Jack! I can't, in good conscious, leave them there when it was our fault they ended up there in the first place."
Jack couldn't believe his ears— On second thought, yeah, he could. Ana had always taken her role as a mother to heart. If there was anyone that would worry about something so small as a bird possibly losing its eggs, it would be Ana. Stubborn woman! Taking a look around once again, this time, Jack spotted their target by the glowing red light on its head. He cursed under his breath, knowing that Ana wouldn't back down now. Seeing that she wouldn't be able to reach the nest, she went over to her and grabbed her, one hand on her belt and another on the back of her body armor. "You better make it fast, 'cuz now we really might end up as Swiss cheese!"
Instead of pulling, he gave her some extra reach by holding onto her weight and leaning her further out. He can't quite see where she is trying to reach in his current position, so he moved around according to Ana's instructions. He clenches his jaw as he has to lower her even more. This wouldn't be good on his back, especially with that things they'd put on his spine. Ana would always be the first one to tell him to take it easy. Funny how that didn't matter as much when they were so close to danger.
"I got it, Jack! Pull me up!" Immediately, Jack pulled her up. If they were quick enough, maybe they could still outrun—
"Bweep. Bweep. Bweep."
Jack felt his skin go cold. Ana was barely safe on the ground and Bastion was already upon them. It walked towards them slowly, weapon held high, aimed directly at Ana. If it'd been a human holding a gun, there would've been a chance for them to disarm take the weapon away or even outrun the gun fire. A Bastion unit? Neither was an option. Jack cursed himself for not looking for a weapon more thoroughly around town—with the town being an old Crusader base, there had to be weapons somewhere. To think he'd survived so long only to be mowed down because of a bird's nest.
But just was about to lose all hope, the small bird he'd seen earlier landed on the barrel of Bastion's gun. The small, yellow bird chirps at Bastion a couple of time, as if calling for its attention. Not really in a position to do anything else, Jack could only look at the interaction between bird and machine unfolding in front of him as he held on to Ana, never really having let go of her belt nor body armor after pulling her up.
Bastion's head lowered to look at the bird, who in turn flaps its wings and skips forward and backwards on the barrel of the gun. After a tense minute or two, the light on the omnic's head flickers between blue and red a few times before landing on blue. This seemingly pleased the bird, who chirped happily before jumping onto the nest in Ana's hands. In response, Bastion extended its hand towards Ana, beeping and booping at her a few times, almost as if asking for her to hand the nest over.
Ana made a move to return it, but Jack pulled her back, not once looking away from the omnic's optic. "Lower your gun first," Jack said.
"We are not here to cause you harm," Ana adds, hoping that it would be enough for Bastion to reconsider. "We just want to talk with you."
Some more beeping later, it lowered the gun. Only then did Jack let go of Ana, who placed the nest in its hand. The bird seemed happy once more, as it chirped at Bastion, who set down the nest on its shoulder before turning to look between Ana and Jack. After even more beeping, Ana interrupts it. "Do you know how Morse code?"
Bastion nods a few times, give out the message for YES.
Jack finally released the breath he didn't know he'd been holding all along, his eyes losing some of their harshness. "We want to talk to you about a safe haven for old soldiers like us."
