The words rang through Mercy's head like a bell. He what?
"I, uhm..." Mercy was totally taken aback by the sudden offering from Gabriel. First he runs away, then he starts a fight with whoever is left in Overwatch by being a part of this Talon group and NOW he wants friends? Mercy stared at the white skull mask, her face a bit blank as she tried to process just what she wanted to say. She was scared that if she said the wrong thing, the man would end up killing her here and now. Though he had had the chance to do so for some time now and he hadn't. Perhaps he wasn't as dark and evil as he made himself out to be?
"Wh...why should I Gabe?" Mercy pushed herself out of the man's grip, standing a bit more straight to come off as more confident in her decision to not simply just bend to his will.
"Why would I want to join you after everything you've done to us?" She stared into those black holes that he called eyes, her breathing a bit quick, though she was doing her best to stay calm.
Gabriel took a deep breath and turned around without answering, walking away from the woman and towards a large, covered display. He stopped at the front of the drape reaching up and gripping it tightly before pulling the thing off quickly to reveal what was under it.
Mercy's eyes were drawn from the back of the black hood to the display, her eyes growing a bit wide as she realized what was waiting under the drape.
"No... when did you get that? They should have been keeping a better eye on it!" Mercy's heart was beating rather quickly, her mind racing with how Gabriel had come to acquire Doomfist's gauntlet.
"You'd be surprised how few secrets can be kept when you break a man's ribs..." Gabriel said coldly, his claw like hand running along the glass case that was home to the gauntlet. Mercy didn't even have to see his face to know that the man was fawning over the power that the gauntlet was said to possess. Mercy had only heard stories herself, though Winston had taken on one iteration of Doomfist by himself and won, which had led to the gauntlet being held as it was.
"What does this have to do with me? How does that damned thing being here change my mind?" Mercy's words were like fire as she spat at the man, growing angrier with each word and breath.
"My dear Angela. I have a plan to eradicate the nuisance that is Overwatch, the nuisance that is Jack Morrison and his lackeys." Gabriel turned to look at the woman, once again removing his mask before continuing, allowing Mercy to see his withered face. His look was sincere, catching Mercy off guard as he softly smiled.
"You were one of the only ones who understood. You understood that sometimes, you had to do whatever it took to make progress. You had to do anything to get what you needed." The man turned around, pulling the hood back so that Mercy could see his face completely, the light only worsening how he looked, though also making him seem much more like the Gabriel she remembered.
"We are similar in that respect Angela and I always respected you for it. With this gauntlet, I can correct the mistakes that we made back then. I can kill off the cancer that is killing this world. But I can't do it alone, as much as I would love to..." He looked back at the gauntlet, his claws scratching down the glass rather loudly and annoyingly.
"I need someone as my second in command. Widow is just a gun. Sombra? A punk with talent. But you..." Gabriel smiled to himself as he started to make his way back towards the woman, his face softening the closer her got to her.
"You are the rational to my irrational, you are the kindness to my rage. An angel and the Reaper. We can do anything it takes to make this world perfect, in our image!" The man was starting to ramble a bit, with Mercy rather speechless. He had never talked this much back in the day, or with such emotion. She had always felt as though he saw her in a different light, his longing gazes not going unseen. She had paid them no mind, her focus on different things back then.
"Gabriel, I..." Mercy was lost in thought, wanting her hardest to help Gabriel, but this wasn't the way. She couldn't begin to think of what the man had in mind when he talked of shaping the world. She agreed that there were some things wrong, but violence couldn't be the answer. Violence only caused more violence. People were always out for blood and as much as Gabriel wanted to say he was above it all, his first mission was to eliminate Jack. Mercy hung her head, shaking it with growing sadness as she realized there was no way she could accept Gabriel's offer. She couldn't live with herself if it meant hurting anyone she cared for. Even if they weren't coming for her after the things she had done.
"I... I can't Gabe. Please.. please just stop this." Mercy felt the hot sting of tears creeping at the corner of her eyes, her breathing starting to get caught in her throat as she looked back up at the man.
"JUST STOP IT! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO KILL THEM? WHY CAN'T YOU BOTH JUST MOVE ALONG AND GET OVER IT?" Mercy's breathing was heavy and labored now, the fire in her belly coming back as she continued her screaming.
"JACK HAS MOVED ON, DID YOU KNOW THAT? OR IS THAT WHY YOU'RE SO PISSED AT HIM? HUH? BECAUSE HE MOVED ON? BECAUSE HE DOESN'T CARE ABOUT YOU LIKE YOU THOUGHT HE DID? BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT THAT YOU TWO HAD SOMETHING AND THEN IT ALL JUST FELL APART?" Mercy stared at the man, his face showing little emotion, before he smiled softly at her.
"Wow... you were right. She is chock full of self loathing."
Mercy paused, her face scrunching a little as she grew confused. Who was he talking to? She turned to find Sombra and Amelie staring at her after her little outburst, the two of them far enough back that they wouldn't have heard anything before hand. A slight fog came over her thoughts, her body shivering in response. Her hands began to shake as she looked back at Gabriel.
"Wh... who are you talking to Gabe?" Her eyes twitched a bit as she searched his body for any sign of a mark like her and Amelie had on their necks.
"No need to worry about that my dear, though I think it's about time we move on with my plan."
Gabriel turned back around quickly, walking towards the glass display case, before rearing back and punching the glass with all his might. The shattering of glass filled the room as the gauntlet fell to the base of the case, ready for the taking. Mercy's body was frozen in place as her eyes came over what she had been dreading. A large mark on the back of Gabriel's neck.
"G-gabe... Let's just leave, we can work something out. Anything you want, okay?" Mercy pleaded as best she could with the man as he took the gauntlet from the broken glass, shaking it off a bit before slipping it snugly over his hand.
A low humming noise would fill Mercy's ears as the gauntlet was fully placed over Gabriel's hand, the thing seeming to be a perfect fit, though it made his forearm look twice the size. The man would move his arm around slightly, wiggling the fingers before clenching his fist tightly, the gauntlet starting to glow.
"I've waited so long for this. The... powerrrr."
Gabriel growled and chuckled to himself, walking to the nearby wall and placing his knuckles against the large and smooth surface. He reared back once more, slamming the gauntlet against the wall with what the others could tell was quite a bit of force. A few seconds passed before a loud cracking sound could be heard, the smooth surface quickly becoming cracked and deformed, a massive chunk of the wall shooting towards the street on the other side.
Mercy's eyes went wide with shock as she watched the display of power. She had no idea that someone like Gabriel could even control the gauntlet, let alone cause such damage so quickly. She was trying to think of a way to get him away from the gauntlet, but she knew that even at her strongest she was no match for him. She couldn't imagine anyone could stop the man now. Their only chance was together, but she had no clue as to whether Jack and the others had even gotten her message.
Gabriel stood in awe of his new power, smiling like he hadn't smiled in so many years. He basked in the warmth of the sun as he brought his left hand and ran it over the mark on his neck, whispering to himself.
"I have the gauntlet, our plan can move forward. But first, it's time for your end of the bargain."
The gauntlet glowed brightly, before the light began to cover Gabriel's body from head to toe slightly, almost causing him to shimmer in the light. Mercy found herself unable to look away, wondering what was going on now, afraid to pipe up in case it wasn't anything good. She gulped a bit as the glow faded, Gabriel turning back around to face the woman. Her eyes became glued to his face, searching every inch in disbelief.
He was... normal again.
His skin was that soft tone that she remembered, his eyes piercing as they gazed back at her. How had he...?
"I'm so glad to see you again Angela. I feel as though it has been far too long since we saw each other like this."
His voice was back to normal, the growl that had resided in his chest seeming to have cleared up thanks to whatever he had done. The man removed his black hood as he made his way back towards Mercy, his eyes barely leaving hers. When they did, it was to glance back at Sombra and Amelie, who were both rather stunned at what the saw before them. As he reached Mercy, Gabriel ran his hand along the woman's cheek.
"Gabriel... how... what did..." She was lost for words. She had only tested the abilities of reconstruction on human tissue, she had never seen such magnificent work like this. Her hands reached out and grabbed his face, more out of scientific curiosity than anything else. It was real, every inch of it. It was warm, the flow of blood obvious as his lips weren't faded and blue. She had almost forgotten about what he done to the wall not a minute ago.
"Yo Gabe, lookin' good! You been hiding under a mask this whole time or what?" Sombra piped up as she and Amelie made their way closer, the younger girl a bit more stuck on the man than the emotionless assassin.
"We can talk about that later. Now though, we need to move onto the next step of our plan..." Gabriel pulled away from Mercy's grasp and held up the gauntlet with a smirk.
"With this, nothing can stand in our way. With Angela with us, we have nothing to fear." The man had seemingly forgotten that Mercy hadn't said yes, Angela about to pipe up when a loud voice filled the room.
"Ryūjin no ken wo kurae!"