Overwatch: Lost in Time

by Raven the Dragon

Before she was the face of Overwatch, Tracer was Lena Oxton, the pilot with Chronal Disassociation. With her accelerator gone, Lena must face what she fears the most: Herself. Demons come back to haunt her that McCree and Genji thought were long gone, and struggles hidden under a smile finally come to light. But it's too late. Lena Oxton might be gone forever.

13. Chapter 13- Snap

Chapter 13: Snap

D,va yawned as the news played on the television in her room. MEKA was kind enough to give all squads enough bunk beds for each member, a drawer for all of them, a desk for each member, and a large television with several HDMI ports for gaming-adjacent to a decent sized sofa. Despite all the training they went through, MEKA usually respected the fact that they were professional gamers, in the end, and playing games would help them control their mechs in the long run. Posters and electronics littered the room in chaotic segments in a desperate but futile attempt to keep the squad's game equipment separate.

Hana didn't know why she had chosen to have the news on, of all things. It was early in the morning, maybe four a.m. She and her squad would have to get moving in an hour, but they had a bit of time before that. Spiders were on his top bunk, half off the bed as he hung upside down while watching what was going on. Somehow, he was managing to drink a mug of coffee with three notches on it at varying heights. The line at the top had "Shhh." Written by it. A little bit down was another line with "Still tired" next to it. At the bottom was the final line, that said: "Now you may speak to me." His coffee was still near the top, so nobody questioned Seasick's antics. He was in baby blue pyjamas, and would likely be the last to be ready to go to training.

Q-Ball was paying zero attention to the television as he played on his gaming setup at his desk despite the early hour. He was already in his battle suit (A.K.A Spandex) and looked jumpy enough to reach the moon. Asi was still sleeping, though. She usually woke up last.

D,va yawned again, louder this time as the reporter droned on about MEKA's recent exploits concerning the Omnic in the Sea.

"MEKA had succeeded in wiping out an entire branch of the Omnic in the Sea, which had been threatening to attack any day now. The death toll was barely a dozen, much smaller than it would have been had the God program attacked." Seasick grunted something incoherent, and Q-Ball huffed, having heard the report despite the headphones he was wearing. Hana gripped the frame of her bed in outrage. She hated it when the world just seemed to gloss over the deaths that did occur. No mention, no honour, no acknowledgement. It was infuriating.

"In other news, three days ago, former Overwatch Lieutenant Reinhardt Wilhelm made an appearance at the Numbani protest against Vishkar. After Lúcio Correia dos Santos, composer of Synaesthesia Auditiva had seemingly been unwillingly detained, a small band of former Overwatch agents had liberated him. Those spotted at the event included Tracer, Reinhardt, Mercy, and Torbörn. Sadly, things took a turn for the tragic as Vishkar attacked a protesting Omnic, killing him. Overall, ten deaths and fifteen injured were counted in the protest," the reporter monotonously read from her scripts in Korean. D,va sat up, intrigued by the news report. Q-Ball had paused his game and turned to watch the report as well, as propaganda images of the respective agents were shown on screen next to haphazardly recorded video footage.

"Finally, after three days of on and off deliberation with the new leader of the reformed Overwatch, Winston, a genetically modified gorilla" a picture of a blueish Gorilla wearing glasses popped up on screen. "The Petras Act, stating that all Overwatch activity is illegal, has finally been recanted. Overwatch is now a legal organisation, free to work in public under the watchful eye of the UK."

Hana quirked her head, turning to Q-Ball, who exchanged a significant glance with her. "Woah, Overwatch is back, huh? Let's hope no more headquarters explode this time," Q-Ball joked indifferently. "Surprised it went this quick, though. Wonder what could've made such an impact."

The news reporter continued. "Part of the hastened recanting of the Petras Act can be due in part to public protests after Mr Wilhelm's speech."

"Oh," Q-Ball tacked on, propping his feet on the desk as he listened. A video shot from a rooftop captured the Crusader in his full glory, holding his massive hammer over his head as though it were plastic. It was a passionate speech as his voice echoed through the clearing without so much as a megaphone."

"And you guys! You fought for what you believe in! I applaud your courage! However, do not endanger yourselves, or others needlessly as you have! Stirring conflict will not bring a mutual respect! Let us soldiers and agents fight the war! That's why we do it! We fight to keep you all out of it! That is what we stand for! That is Overwatch!"

"Now, back to you, Carl." Hana shut off the news report, taking a deep breath.

"Well, if that wasn't inspirational."

Q-Ball snorted. "No kidding. Dude is passionate. I wonder if Overwatch would be willing to help us out with the Omnic in the Sea?"

Hana sighed. "I wouldn't get your hopes up. They only just got back together. Odds are there aren't many agents to work with." Hana flopped back on her bed, fiddling with a pillow shaped like her bunny emblem.

"Pity. I was hoping I could get a few autographs, maybe auction them off to my stream."

Hana snorted, throwing the pillow at him, which he caught effortlessly and tossed back to her "You're horrible, you know that?" She declared with a laugh as the pillow landed on her face.

"Tell me something I don't know," he joked back, grabbing his headphones to finish his game. The intercom in their room buzzed. That was weird. Their handlers weren't supposed to call them for another hour or so. Q-Ball paused, tilting his head to listen with D,va

"Hana Song, your presence is required in the commander's office. Please head directly to the leader's office," A Korean male voice recited emotionlessly.

"Wuh-oh. What'd you do to piss off the boss?" Q-Ball teased, turning back to his game.

Hana groaned, struggling off the bed and stretching, grateful she had chosen to get ready earlier than usual. "Hell if I know. He probably just wants to get onto me for our distinct love for our handlers that we show, as usual."

"Yeah, what a killjoy," Q-Ball whined good-naturedly. "Well, good luck! Hope you live to see the next mission!"

"Oh no, it's a nightmare scenario. Can I just die now?" Hana chuckled as she strode over to the door. "Rock and a hard place for sure."

"Have fun!" Q-Ball teased as he waved to her with a sadistic smile. D,va loved her squad.

…

Tracer leant against the wall of the back of the debriefing room, which was one of the random rooms in Gibraltar with a long table and some standard chairs. A window overlooked the bright blue sea that trailed on for miles. It was pretty.

Spirits were high as Winston cleared his throat. "So, thanks to Reinhardt's speech, after several days, we have finally gotten the Petras act recanted!" Cheers erupted through the room, worsening Tracer's headache. She watched in indifference, bandages still wrapping her burns. "Overwatch is once again a legal organisation, though we are under the watchful eye of the UK, we still have a fair amount of freedom in how we operate." Winston fiddled with a small stack of papers in front of him. "Several companies are offering their services, sending their own agents to work with us in a sort of partnership. I know it might seem odd, but we are all aware we are short-staffed, and having agents from various organisations can help us keep peace and play ambassador should the need arise."

Jesse leant back in his chair, kicking his feet up on the table. "So in other words, we'll be able to handle more than one or two missions at a time."

Winton nodded, adjusting his glasses. "Precisely. Helix Security International has already given permission for Pharah to stay, and we have gotten in touch with several other companies as well."

"Like who?" Ana inquired, sipping the tea in front of her.

"MEKA has agreed to send us one of their best in exchange for sending them help if the Omnic in the Sea mounts a major attack. The Russian Army is more stubborn regarding cooperating but have not declined yet. Vishkar even agreed to send us someone."

Lúcio jumped up from his seat, slamming his fists on the table. "Vishkar!? Why would you let them send an agent to us?! They'll probably stab us in the back or try to destroy Overwatch again! Besides, you guys attacked them! Why would they want to send us an agent!"

Winston sighed, looking away. "I know it is a sore spot for you, but it would be counterproductive to what I just said to not allow them to send someone. They do seek influence in Overwatch, but this can be used as a double-edged sword, giving us some control the other way as well. Like it or not, it is the best choice."

Lúcio huffed, flopping down in the chair, mindful to not let his back touch it due to the injuries he still sported. He glared downward at the table but didn't offer any other objections.

Genji piped up, finally back on his feet after the doctor repaired his knee. "I know at least two others that would be willing to join us. I will work on getting in contact with them. Winston nodded, writing that on a sheet of paper.

Lúcio huffed, still upset about Vishkar. "I have some connections in Numbani as well."

Ana chuckled. "It might be pricey, but I have some old 'business associates' that I could get in contact with as well."

Winston furiously took notes, smiling with excitement.

Torbjörn grunted. "If we're having a contest or such, I have a new 'friend' I've been working on repairing. I'm sure it'll be thrilled to bits to help us." Despite the confusion, Winston continued making a note of that. A few people shot him a weird look.

Winston rubbed his hands together. "Wonderful! Altogether we will have around twenty field agents! I'd say that is a decent way to start out!"

Jesse did a finger gun. "This is all well and good, but I guess you have a mission in mind for us?"

Winston nodded. "In fact, I do, though it won't require firepower. It has been recently brought to my attention," Tracer couldn't help but notice how he carefully avoided her stony gaze. "that the staff from the base in Ecopoint: Antarctica froze themselves in cryostasis, meaning they might still be alive. We're going to send a search and rescue team there to find the climatologists and to see what we can salvage from the base."

Commander Morrison nodded. "Who all do you plan to have go?"

Winston flipped to another set of notes he took. "Dr Ziegler and Captain Amari, mostly due to their prowess in the medical field to help anyone that survived. I was hoping you would come as well, Commander Morrison, on the off chance we do need firepower. I will go as well to see if we can salvage any of the research. Lieutenant Wilhelm, could you come as well in case we need to do some heavy lifting?"

Reinhardt bellowed a laugh. "Of course! I would be a hypocrite to ignore someone in need!"

McCree thought for a moment. "That would leave me, Genji, Lena, Fareeha, and Torbjörn to watch Gibraltar."

Winston nodded again. "Yes. It will give you all more time to recover, though I know you are more than capable of handling yourselves should something happen."

"And what of our little 'friend' we have holed up in that old cell?"

"Just make sure she has someone watching her at all times. Fareeha has been kind enough to do so for now, but she could probably use a break."

"I'm on it." Tracer piped up from her corner of the room. She could practically taste the unease in the chamber. Everyone seemed so intent on pointing out how "off" she was acting.

Winston shuffled the papers nervously, "Uh, Lena, are you sure? You might want to wait until you recover a bit more, I'm sure Genji would be happy to watch instead or something like that."

Tracer put her hand up, cutting him off. "No, I'm fine. I'll be watching Sombra. Come get me if something important happens." Tracer blinked off before anyone could stop her.

…

Sombra smirked from behind the bars as Tracer entered the cell. She exchanged glances with Fareeha, who nodded appreciatively and the time-travelling agent take her spot, leaving the room without so much as a word.

"So, the poster girl is here to watch me at last. What an honour!" Sombra teased, kicking back on her bed. "How have you been? Chronal disassociation been treating you well?"

Tracer rolled her eyes and said nothing.

"Aw, what? I get to be graced by the happy-go-lucky Tracer's presence, and she won't speak to me? What a shame!"

Tracer still said nothing, sitting on the chair awkwardly as her harness forced her to hold herself onto the edge of it. Sombra just chuckled.

"You know, you could take a load off. I'm sure you'll live a few inches away from that little teleportation toy you have there." Tracer glared. No way in hell was she taking her accelerator off around this girl.

"Man, you really are going to be silent, huh? Fine, I'll be playing music games." True to her word, the hacker used her Null Sector projector HoloVid to pull up some odd music game, where she repeatedly composed horrible songs and played them back to herself. Tracer just glared.

…

It had been an hour of Tracer watching Sombra until she stopped playing the music game. She nonchalantly flipped over to some files full of number and pictures that Tracer could make out from the opposite side of the projection. It included a picture of her harness from when Talon had it. Tracer piped up, her voice was cold.

"Where did you learn to fix my harness?"

"Gasp! The girl has a voice! Who'da thunk it!" Sombra taunted, still scrolling through the file.

"Where did you learn to fix my harness?" she repeated, her gaze menacing.

"I didn't learn to fix your harness specifically, I just used some old designs of mine."

"Designs for what?"

"Wanna see? Don't worry, it's deactivated. I swear I can't teleport to it. It's how I got here in the first place." Sombra strode over to the food slot in her cell, passing a strange, cylindrical object to Tracer, who snatched it suspiciously.

Tracer tossed the little object in her hands, inspecting every side of it. It was familiar. Way too familiar. Horribly, horribly, familiar.

"Where did you learn how to make this!?" Tracer demanded, tightening her grip on the object. It was a teleportation matrix. It was way too similar to the teleportation matrix. The one that stole her humanity. It was the Slipstream.

"Some old designs I found."

Tracer jumped up from the seat and walked menacingly over to the cell, mere inches away from an all-too-laidback Sombra. "That you found? Or stole?"

Sombra tsked. "You make it sound so bad. But a girl's gotta have the latest tech. That latest tech just so happened to line up with that fancy schmancy jet you were flying."

Tracer froze, her eyes wide. No. This girl. She didn't steal the designs from any old computer in Overwatch.

"It was a surprisingly complex system to hack. Lots of encoding, but it was nothing I couldn't handle. Once I was in, I just had to take the info I needed. Once I had that, though, I wasn't just going to let Overwatch have that ultra-powerful jet of theirs. Especially since it had been perfected."

"It wasn't perfected, though." Tracer retorted weakly, her voice shaking.

"Oh, amiga. It was, though. Everything except the firewall that is."

"You… you didn't!"

"Didn't what?" Sombra asked innocently, smirking as she rubbed her thumb along her nails.

"It was you! You made the jet crash!"

"Ding ding ding! We have a winner! Come down and collect your prize!"

Hot tears of fury stung Tracer's eyes. "You did this! This is your fault! You did this to me!" Tracer gripped her accelerator firmly. Her life support. Life support Sombra had put her on.

"Oh, don't be dramatic. You're all well-and-good now, aren't you?"

"Do you have any idea what this does?! How it feels to be like me? I don't think you do! It's horrible, having to live like this, and I get to be like this for the rest of my life because of what you did to me! Did you even care that there was a pilot in that jet?! Did you even think about what you might do to me, or anyone else that happened to be in there? Or did you just not care!?"

Sombra yawned, unfazed at the onslaught of rage. "I mean, I didn't expect the jet to backfire like that! Honestly, I just thought you'd die. But nope. You got lucky and managed to survive."

"Sometimes I wonder if it was better that I survived. I'd like to see you survive a day like this!"

Sombra laughed. "Yeah, I know. Strange dreams, vivid darkness, blah blah blah."

"So you know? You KNOW what happens and you still don't care?! Could you be any viler?!"

The hacker hummed thoughtfully. "Actually, yeah. I could if I wanted. For instaaaaance…" before Tracer could do anything, Sombra swiped her hand over the harness through the bars. Tracer's breathing quickened as she watched purple web its way over her harness, turning the shining blue gear a dark violet.

"I could do this."

Tracer bellowed an enraged cry as her blink activated without her making it happen; she was sent backwards into the wall with a loud thud.

"See, I could do that… but I won't." Sombra waved her hand with a grin as the purple disappeared from the harness. Tracer backed against the wall. This girl. She could control the harness! She could control Tracer!

No! She was done with this! She was done with this conversation! She was getting out of here! Sombra just watched with an amused smirk as Tracer blinked out of the room in a hurry, desperate to get as far away as possible.

"Lena! What's wrong?" she heard Jesse cry, who she had just passed. He was carrying a tray of food for Sombra, precariously balanced on his one good arm since his prosthetic was yet to be repaired by Torbjörn.

Tracer whipped around to face him, he was worried, confused, and slightly panicked. "You watch Sombra!" was all she said.

"What? Why? What happened?"

"I said, you watch Sombra! Just do it! I'm leaving!" Tracer blinked away before he could object.

…

Wrong. Wrong. Something was wrong. Jesse watched as Lena blinked away in panic, humiliation, fear, anger, and any other emotion that didn't was no doubt in his mind, now. Sombra had done something. Something wrong. He needed to talk to her now.

"Athena, tell Genji to meet me in front of Sombra's cell, fast."

"Right away, Agent McCree."

Genji met with Jesse in less than two minutes. Hesse gave him the quick version of what just happened, and the two of them entered Sombra's cell together.

"Oh! I get two people watching me this time! What's the occasion?"

Jesse held the tray, setting it on the ground with no intentions of giving her the food anytime soon. "Spill it. What the hell did ya do to Lena?"

"I don't know what you mean," she declared, putting a hand to her heart. "I'm hurt that you'd think I'd do such a thing to poor, little, Lena."

McCree watched her with an almost passive expression. "I don't think you understand your position here. Let me make myself clear: He slammed his fist on the bar of the cell. "What. Did. Ya. Do?"

"Does everybody here use the exact same interrogation methods? I'm so scared!" she taunted, rolling her eyes. "Buuuuuut, since you asked nicely, I was the one to repair her harness."

"That was you? Why do such a thing?" Genji asked suspiciously, his voice calm.

"What? You'd think I'd just let poor Lena suffer from that abhorrent condition of hers? Though, first thing I did when I came here was give the harness a little… check-up."

McCree and Genji froze. It all made sense now. The puzzle pieces clicked into place. Sombra had hacked Lena's harness, and it was messing with her head!

McCree's impassive visage melted into fury. He turned to Genji, his voice fiery and gruff. "You go get that harness from Lena. We gotta get it off her. I'll watch our little friend here."

Genji nodded and dashed out the room towards Lena's room. He must hurry. He barged into her room. It was a mess. Her model aeroplanes that she had taken great pride in showing him were on the floor in pieces, plastic and wood littering the ground. Her journal had been thrown to the floor as well, crumpling a few pages. Lena herself was on her bed, curled up and sobbing. She was shaking uncontrollably and covering her face with her hands.

"Leave me alone, Genji!" She bellowed, throwing one of her nearby models at him. He caught it and set it gingerly on her dresser.

"Lena, calm down. You are not well. Whatever Sombra told you, pay it no heed. She is messing with your mind."

"Oh, my mind, you say!? My mind and everything else!" she shrieked, not leaving the bed. "Just leave me alone! I'm fine!"

"No, you are not!" Genji grabbed her wrist, pulling off his visor as he stared at her intently. She glared at him with streams of tears flowing down her eyes. "Listen to me. Sombra hacked your harness earlier, and it is what has been causing you this unrest."

Tracer's eyes narrowed. "Sure, sure! It has to be because of her hacking it! Me? No! It can't have been me! I'm not an upset person! I'm not allowedto be! I'm the perky, happy one! No sadness for me! Nope! No-can-do!" she yanked her hand away, shaking.

"Lena. I understand you have gone through a lot of pain as of late. But please, be rational. Let me have the harness. We will take you to the stabilisation chamber, and we'll have it fixed as quickly as possible."

"I refuse."

"Pardon me? Do you not wish for us to help you? Lena, think about this," Genji pleaded, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"I said no! I'm FINE! Quit fawning over me! I hate that room! I thought you knew that! I'd say let her play with my feelings as long as I don't need to disappear again!"

"Lena! Take off the harness! You are not well!"

"I WON'T!"

"You will!" Genji shouted back reaching for the clasp on the harness, he pulled it loose and prepared to detach the harness.

"What the hell are you doing!? Let go!" Tracer grabbed her nearby pistol and shot at Genji, who was completely unprepared. He grunted as the bullets dented his arm.

"Lena! Stop!" Genji cried, grabbing his visor as she blinked out of the room. "Lena!" Tracer was fast. Thankfully, Genji was quick, too. He chased her, a blur of green trailing a blur of blue.

Genji pulled one of his shurikens out of the compartment on his arm, throwing it faster than humanly possible as the hallways zoomed by.

Lena managed to avoid it, blinking in a zigzag long enough to prevent the small weapon from tearing a strap. She retaliated by flashing behind him shooting his back. He groaned, whipping around with more shurikens, throwing three of them. One of them grazed her arm as she dodged the other two, jumping over him as she continued blinking.

Genji sprinted in front of her, using a shuriken to slice one of the straps on the harness. It wasn't enough, though. It remained secured to her chest as she fled.

Oh no. Genji knew where she was going, as they sped past the hangar. McCree was ready, having heard the ruckus.

"It's high noon!" he shouted, pulling out peacekeeper. There was a bang, and Lena toppled to the ground, flying forward several feet as she skidded on the cold, stone ground. Genji held her down with his left arm, using his right as he reached for the harness.

"No!" Lena shouted. Blue coated her body as the men flinched back. She rewound through time, now in front of McCree, who had run up to try and stop Lena.

He cried out as she shot him in the chest, his armour only blocking some of the bullets. McCree twisted and kicked her legs out from under her, but she grabbed his arm and pulled him to the ground with her. He felt the world surge and twist around him as Lena blinked, still holding on to him. They blinked forward several feet as McCree's stomach hit the floor and he retched from the effects of the time travel.

Genji dashed over, pulling slicing two more of the straps on the harness. It hung loosely on her as she blinked away, using one hand to hold it to her. Almost. He almost had her.

McCree struggled to his feet, swaying as Genji kept Lena busy. He fired peacekeeper at the final clasp as the harness finally came loose from her body. Genji charged again, tearing it away from her as she struggled. He flipped off the switch, and Lena froze. She glared at him with so much contempt and betrayal that it hurt as he watched her body become incorporeal.

"Behind you," he heard someone call in a singsong voice. He whipped around, throwing another shuriken as he felt the familiar cold nails scrape over his circuitry. His joints locked up as he glared at his attacker. Sombra circled Genji, inspecting him like he was an item.

She rolled her eyes when McCree shakily pointed Peacekeeper at her. Sombra tore the accelerator from Genji's locked arms and turned it on, tossing it to Lena. She caught it readily and immediately blinked with Jesse again, causing him to lose any composure he had as he vomited again.

Tracer clutched her harness close and took a deep breath. "Widowmaker said I can go to Talon. I won't let them put me back in that room!" she declared, barely above a whisper.

Sombra chuckled. "I was wondering how long it would take you to accept! Welcome aboard, amiga. Grab on." Sombra held her hand out for Lena.

"Lena! Don't! Stop! That's not you! You're not thinking straight! Please!" Genji desperately cried, still unable to move.

McCree, still unable to move properly, begged Lena from his knees. "Lena, d'ya really think they'll… treat ya all well 'n good in Talon!? Use yer head…" he fell into another spell of vomiting.

Slowly, Lena reached for Sombra's hand, not looking at those who called her a sister. Sombra smirked as Lena gripped her hand firmly.

"Translocating. Don't worry, Lena. This should be a very familiar trip."

Then they were gone. Lena was gone, having vanished in a burst of purple light. Genji's joints unlocked, and he fell to his knees.

"No… she's gone… Lena's gone…"

…

"Alrighty, Gabe. Go nuts," Sombra announced as soon as she and Lena appeared in a cold room. The walls were an unwelcoming grey that matched the floor. The door was heavy and wouldn't be possible to pen with force, though it was open now. The room was surprisingly big, though. Reaper stood in the doorway, clutching a remote Sombra had given him. She hummed. "And with that…" Sombra waved her hand, deactivating the emotional manipulator she had incorporated into the harness.

Tracer groaned, nearly stumbling to the ground. She shook her head, looking up with renewed fears. "Oh no… What have I…?"

"Welcome to Talon!" Sombra called cheerily, strolling past Reaper to watch the fireworks. Reaper pressed a button on the remote, and the hair on Sombra's neck stood up as Lena suddenly convulsed, jerking as though being shocked. Her harness that she had been holding to herself turned off, though she showed no signs of fading. The air in the room became charged and strange feeling, making Sombra's skin crawl.

Reaper laughed darkly, taking several steps back as Lena held her harness tight, desperately searching for an escape. Then Reaper stepped out of the way of the door, gesturing for Lena to leave. She didn't hesitate, charging right at the door. As she reached the door, however, a bright blue coated her, and she was hurled backwards several feet, dropping her harness.

Reaper didn't hesitate, scooping it up and tossing it to Sombra, who was busy laughing from the ridiculous sight in front of her. Tracer tried again, running up to the door, only to be launched backwards in a blink several feet. She stumbled, toppling to the ground.

"Wh-What is that!? How are you doing this!?" Sombra just laughed as she effortlessly stepped through the door with no repercussions, taking the harness with her. "No! My accelerator! Give me my accelerator! Please!"

"I'm afraid the magic word won't get you anywhere here, amiga," Sombra teased, holding the harness in front of her as Lena stared with a pathetic and terrified look. "Look, I'm glad to have you in Talon. Really, I am. Unfortunately, though, Gabe here feels the need to guarantee your loyalty."

Tracer's eyes widened as she realised her position. She shuffled backwards a few inches as Reaper took a menacing step forward. He rasped out another threat. "And don't think this will be like your friend in Hanamura. I give you my word, right here, right now. You will not be leaving this room until your loyalty is assured."

"Welcome aboard!" Sombra repeated as she strode away with her new toy, leaving Lena to play with her new friend.