Revised on the 9th of November 2017


AN: I forgot that DVa's name disappears when it has the period, so I took care of those discrepancies (31/5/2017).


Watchpoint: Gibraltar, Mediterranean Sea, Europe

2076

The prison block was sparse, only a few personnel patrolling the area as Nathan strolled through the hallway to meet up with Bastion, again – realizing he hasn't visited the Omnic at all since he got back. Felt it would be nice to catch up with him and see if they were doing right by him.

Walking past the cells, he noticed armed guards escorting a man in a grey-blue prison uniform, two at the back and one leading the group. The prisoner was the Talon operative, almost unrecognizable without all the duct tape over his body. Glumly staring at the restraints around his wrists. His eyes then peered to his left to see Nathan walking by and glaring at him. The prisoner then quickly averted his eyes, the tall man still eyeballing him as they passed by until they were out of sight.

About to reach where they kept Bastion, he turned to face the glass pane and greet the large Omnic. Instead, an empty cell and an open door greeted him. His mind started to race about where Bastion was or what happened to him while he was gone. Almost automatically, they raced to the worst assumptions. He quickly turned on his heels, hellbent to figure out what happened to his Omnic friend, but almost bumped right into Mirembe. How convenient.

"Brin, I-"

"Where the hell's Bastion?!" Brin questioned, cutting her off.

The security guard went from calm to alert in a split-second, tensing up and hovering her right hand over her hip. Keeping it close to her holster.

"Calm down!" Mirembe told him, backing away and holding up her free hand in front of her. "The Omnic is fine. I was just going to explain why it isn't here. So, can you please ease up, sir?"

Upon being told that nothing happened to Bastion, he complied, just a tad, and his face softened as his breathing became more regular. Mirembe also began to calm down, becoming somewhat less tense in his presence, but still wary.

"Due to a strain of resources and your recent capture of that prisoner," she began, Nathan's eyes hanging over her. "The Security Division felt it would've been in our best interest to let the Bastion Unit be free from its cell, especially since it hasn't posed any significant security issues. If you're wondering, Security-Chief Amari was the one who suggested this."

He didn't show it, but he was astonished by that information. To learn that Amari seemed to be disregarding how feared the Bastion Units were and was willing to let the big robot roam of its own volition. If that was what the plan was. She's become really trusting of that machine over a short span of time. It wasn't what he wanted to know, though.

"But where's Bastion?" he demanded once more.

"You're not the only person on base who's taken an interest in the Omnic," she responded, crossing her arms.

"What do you mean?" his suspicions only raised further.

"Doctor Mei-Ling Zhou, don't know if you know her, has taken it out for her own personal use the past couple of days. Even before you got back from Oasis. She's been using it as a 'research assistant' for some reason."

"He's been making friends? With Doctor Zhou?"

"I guess, sir."

Nathan was amused with the thought of that big robot – manufactured for war – helping the Chinese Climatologist. He imagined the bird was given a task, too. Created a funny image in his head. He made a mental note to remind himself to figure out what he should name it.

"Well, where did they head off to?" Nathan asked, his tone much more sociable than it was moments earlier.

"Winston's lab," Mirembe answered. "I'm sure you know the way."


Reaching the unkempt laboratory of the Gorilla in just a few minutes, the first thing Nathan sees is the large, armored hull of Bastion looking at the huge holographic screen of a world map and seemingly awestruck while that bird accompanied him on his shoulder. Only when Nathan got closer to him did the machine finally notice the visitor. The rather emotive robot was more than happy to see a friend. Before he could even greet him, the human felt a powerful metal arm wrap around his torso and squeeze him tight to the Omnic's chassis. Feeling the cold metal grinding and rubbing against his chest. The pressure crushing his back as a series of elated boops and beeps and whoos sounded off.

"It's good to see you, too," the man rasped out, patting a metal plate with a free-hand. "Looks like you learned the concept of hugging. Good for you."

"Ooo wzz ooo wee!" the Omnic responded, happy to hear the compliment.

"Uh… You can let me go now."

Brin was finally released from the giant robot's hug of death and took in a few gulps of air to recover. After he did so, he looked up at Bastion who looked down on him, still with that glimmer of curiosity in him. The yellow bird regarding him, as well.

"So, where's everyone?" Nathan asked, seeing Bastion all by himself. "I thought Dr. Zhou took you out to be an assistant."

"Poot chii ooo," Bastion responded, pointing up towards Winston's office.

"Really? What're they talking about?"

"Woo oo."

Puzzled, Nathan looked up at the office before going up to the staircase, Bastion following him. Getting to the second level, they walked over to the office space and could see through the doorway Winston and Mei huddled around his desk. However, unlike the bubbly and friendly woman he just met a day ago, she looked visibly upset. As Nathan got closer, he noticed Angela was there, too. By Mei's side and trying to comfort her. The Doctor took notice of the man entering the room.

"Nathan," Angela said, standing up but keeping a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Didn't expect to see you here so soon."

"I came here to check on Bastion," Nathan replied, pointing a thumb back at him. "What's going on?"

Winston looked at him before typing on his computer and bringing up a holoimage of a tower in the middle of a metropolitan area. Didn't look like the biggest building the Wastelander's seen in this world, but to him, it was still huge.

"This is Lijiang Tower," the Scientist explained. "Located in China. Something happened. I'm still trying to gather as much information as I can, but we might need to deploy a team there very soon."

"What exactly is happening over there?" Nathan questioned, wanting more answers if this was going to lead to what he thought it would.

"As I said, I'm still trying to gather as many details as I can, but I believe there is a hostage situation happening at the tower. Mei and I have some friends who work at Lijiang."

Nathan glanced over at the Chinese woman, who still hasn't said a word since he got here.

"Any idea who's behind it?" he asked, looking back at Winston.

"No, I'm not even sure if Talon is involved. I've already notified other agents to prep themselves for the mission. I was about to notify you but you're already here. So, are you willing to help?"

The Courier was only back for a day and he was about to be called back to action so soon. He didn't like it.

"I'd like to know a bit more before I throw myself into a hail of gunfire, again," he requested, reluctant to get back into another situation blind.

"I promise I'll try to have a full debrief by the time we're ready to move," Winston offered, sounding desperate. "I know it's a lot to take in so soon. But please know we must act fast, or people's lives will be on the line!"

'What's new?' he thought, keeping it in his head.

The Courier just stared at Winston, reluctant to take him up on his "offer". Already feeling tired from hearing about this mission alone. He looked to the side to see Mei sitting back down and holding her hand to face, a million worried thoughts going through her mind. He then met eyes with Angela, a solemn expression on hers as she tried to comfort her Climatologist friend.

"Do I really have a choice?" he muttered lowly, his shoulders sulking and shaking his head, before straightening up. "Goddammit… What do I need to do?"

"Gear up and head over to the hangar," the pseudo-commander instructed, getting back onto his computer. "You'll meet up with the other agents there."

Nathan silently nodded, turning around and walking past Bastion through the doorway. About to go downstairs

"Thank you for this, Nathan!" he heard Mei call out from behind, the gratitude in her tone a return to form for her.

The Courier paused at the top of the stairs for a split-second, before finally going down to the ground level and lightly running to his quarters to gear up.


The hangar was bustling with activity as security personnel and flight technicians scrambled all over the area as one of the MV-261 Orca's was being prepped for takeoff. Red and orange lights flashing, their light bouncing around the surrounding walls. Amidst all of it, Nathan stood out in his black armor as he made his way to the dropship. Making the Overwatch personnel part around him and some giving him a few uneasy stares. Gave him a lot of space for his wide gait.

In his left hand, he carried a small bag of gear he may need for the mission and in his right, he held All-American, the barrel up in the sky with an empty magwell. Safety first, of course. His M1911 was strapped to his thigh and bandoliers were splayed over his waist and armored torso, but were filled with 8mm Mauser rounds instead of the usual .45-70's, as the old Karabiner was slung over his shoulder. It felt good bringing something substantial for an operation.

Finally making it to the dropship, he saw McCree in front of the ramp taking drags from a cigar. When he noticed the armored man walking up to him, he tipped his hat.

"Took you long enough," McCree noted, taking a long, last pull from the cigar before throwing it to the ground and snuffing the flame out.

"Coming along?" Brin asked, climbing up the ramp.

"Me and then some."

Nathan immediately found out what he meant by that when he entered the cabin and saw two other agents occupying aircraft. The first being Genji, sitting on the booth table as he sharpened a short blade with a whetstone. The Waster was curious to see what the fellow cyborg was capable of, only seeing him fight once more than a month ago. The second, was that egg-shaped, pink "Power Armor" he also saw that day, but it was immobile as he saw someone doing maintenance on top of it. Presumably the pilot, he walked over to see someone in a skin-tight jumpsuit that was largely white around the legs and shoulders and blue around the torso and arms. There were metal bits and pink highlights that outlined areas of the suit, and a black, wavy material woven into the hips and shoulders. They were also some strange looking decals on the side of her thighs. He looked up to see a pale face with pink war paint staring back.

"Ah, shit…" he cursed, immediately recognizing who it was. "You're coming, too?"

"Yup," DVa answered haughtily, looking down at the tall man from her atop her machine. "Surprised?"

"In a way. Interesting power armor."

"It's a 'mech', not power armor."

"Whatever you say, kid."

The Pilot rolled her eyes before attending to her mech.

Leaving her to her duties, Nathan went over to the booth table and laid his gear and two rifles down, examining both weapons to see if they were combat-ready.

"Don't worry about her," he heard the Cowboy reassuring him, gesturing to the Mech Pilot. "She's a good kid. She knows how to handle herself in a fight."

"Anyone can, with armor like that," the Courier remarks, scoping the Karabiner to see if it's properly sighted. "I'm just afraid she might get in the way of things. This is a hostage situation, so why are we bringing a pink tank to resolve it?"

"You'd be surprised what she can do with that thing; Hana's a natural. Her shooting, though? Now that's a different story."

"I heard that!" Hana exclaimed, glaring at the poncho'd man.

"Meant nothing by it, cottontail," Jesse called back, smirking.

As the two had their banter, Nathan was still inspecting his gear, inserting a magazine into All-American and shaking it a few times to see if it locked in place. He heard more footsteps clambering onto the Orca and turned around to see Dr. Ziegler walking in, outfitted in her Valkyrie suit. Seeing her, the Courier felt a bit relieved knowing she'd be close-by in case he ever needed medical attention. In case anyone here did. That feeling of relief soon dissipated as he saw Winston climb onto the ship after Dr. Ziegler, now a bit aggravated knowing that he was coming along. He held a large rectangular, white weapon in his hand and had equipment protruding from his back. Not long after they got in, the ship's ramp closed, and they could feel it thrust into the air. Now, he was trapped with him.

"Greetings, everyone," the ape said, addressing every person in the cabin, even Nathan. "I wish we could've gathered under better circumstances, but this is the unfortunate nature of things. I'm sure all of you know why we're here? Let me further debrief you all on the situation."

He went over to the holodeck in the center of the cabin and connected a holopad to it. The other agents, including Nathan, gathered around the desk. Dr. Ziegler found herself at Nathan's side, again.

"Looks like we'll working together, again; Doesn't it, Doctor?" he asked, regarding her as he leans against the desk. "Sooner than I'd like."

"It appears so," she responded, taking a deep sigh. "I can only hope this will fare better than the last mission."

"Hopefully we'll get back home much sooner, too."

"Agreed."

All attention was then diverted to the center as the hologram above them flashed, morphing into a holographic model of the tower they were being sent to. Even able to see its "bones", the metal beams and foundations. Winston then cleared his throat as he began to debrief them.

"All right, team. As you may know, we are being sent in to diffuse a hostage situation currently occurring at Lijiang Tower. What some of you may not know is that Lijiang Tower is the workplace for Lucheng Interstellar, an aerospace company and dear friends of mine."

The image of a stylized "L" with a mass orbiting it then appeared. The Gorilla continued.

"While we have no confirmation that the hostage takers are associated with Talon, they are armed and dangerous. We also know that they have completely shut down the entire tower from entry. Local law enforcement is trying the best they can, but it looks like we'll have to be going in. So, here's the plan."

The model of the tower reappeared again, with a blinking dot following a line that leads to the middle of the tower, where it seemed to have open spaces.

"We'll first land on the western side of the tower, where Nathan, Genji, and Hana will drop off and head inside. Clearing any hostiles they encounter while rescuing hostages. On the eastern side, same deal but with McCree, Angela, and I. We'll meet up in the center and proceed to work our way through the tower and clear out as much as we can. But the hostages take priority."

"How many hostages do we have to worry about, Winston?" Angela asked.

"Luckily, it's only the people Lucheng offices that we have to worry about as the rest of the tower seems to have been evacuated. We get in, get the hostages out, then leave. Any questions?"

No one raised their hands but Nathan.

"Yeah, I got one," he said, thirsty for the details. "What kinda force are we expecting from these guys? Any heavy weapons? Emplacements? Anti-Air we should be worried about before droppin' in?"

"I'm still trying to get as much information as I can, but yes," Winston confirmed. "As I stated, they are armed and locked down the entire tower. So, we best prepare for whatever they have in store for us."

"That's a pretty great non-answer. At least we have a plan…"

Winston couldn't but help sympathize with that thought, sighing as he pushed up his glasses.

"Rest up everyone, we still have some time before we get there. When we do… Be ready."


A few hours later…

20 miles due west of Lijiang Tower, China, Asia

By the time the Orca had reached the skylines of the Chinese city the sun had already left, and it was dark over the cityscape. However, the sprawling metropolis showered the landscape with its own light, enough to blind anyone high above the clouds to witness such a spectacle. Even over the horizon, he could see the lights miles away.

This was the fourth city and the fourth country Nathan has visited within this world, and he stared out of the ramp's window almost in a sense of silent awe. Having only ever seen these cities from the ground, this was like watching an ocean of lights thousands of feet beneath him passing by. It wasn't the flashiness or the brightness that stood out to him, it was the absolute volume that astounded him. The lights stretching on for miles and miles on end. The brightness of New Vegas would only be a polyp to this huge city.

"Something catch your eye?" a synthetic voice prodded, Genji approaching him from the side.

"Never seen so many lights," the Waster explained, those red eyes still peering through the window. "Read about China in those Pre-War books. They talked about how huge their population was. Didn't realize their cities would reflect that."

"You should see the city where I'm from, back in Japan. Quite expansive, as well, but much cleaner."

"Is it dense?"

"Unbelievably so."

Silence then reigned between the two, listening to the cabin's humming. Both watching the sea of lights go by under their ship. The Waster's not looking at anything else, but Genji's peered under his green visor and peered to his helmeted head.

"I'm curious, Nathan," Genji expressed. "What happened to Japan during the Great War?"

"I'd assumed, like everyone else, they received their fair share of nukes," the Wastelander answered rather straightforwardly. "There were probably radioactive hurricanes, after that. I know California had something similar when it all went down, being up against the ocean. Beyond that? Not a clue. Same goes for everywhere else."

"Shame. Do you ever wonder how other places on the Earth are faring?"

"Not really. Saves me the headache."

They stood there in silence for a few minutes, again, watching the sea drift by.

"Attention, agents," Athena announced over the ship's intercom. "We are rapidly approaching Lijiang Tower. ETA: five minutes."

"You heard her, everyone," Winston called out, wiping his glasses clean before putting them back on. "It's now or never."

Hearing those words, everyone scrambled to prepare for the drop. The Courier went to retrieve his guns from the booth, loading the Mauser full of rounds and slinging it over his back. Then slamming a full magazine into All-American and chambering a 5.56 round. It felt good being with something familiar, again.

A loud mechanical noise from behind made him turn around and see the kid climbing into her mech through the back, the machine then standing up on its two legs and turning to face him. Seeing her in the cockpit and behind a turquoise shield. He didn't appreciate having those cannons in the same direction as his face.

"Think you can catch up with me?" she asked, a cocky smile on her face.

"We'll see, kid," he merely answered, walking to the door with the green carbine dangling around his waist. "Let's just focus on not screwing this up."

"You should say 'hi' to the stream!"

"The what?"

Suddenly, a gust of wind began rushing through the cabin as the ramp door opened. The sight of a large tower on the horizon – taller than the other buildings around it – getting closer and closer to them. In the middle of the spire was the opening that was discussed, metal beams crisscrossing around it but allowing enough of a space for the whale of a ship to squeeze through. He looked down at the base of the tower to see a collection of flashing lights and a crowd of people gathered and looking like ants. Many of the lights flashing blue and red. Seeing some spotlights among them, too. One of the beams going from the tower and directly at their dropship. Almost blinding him.

"Looks like the police spotted us," Nathan growled, trying to shield his eyes.

"I hope they know we're here to help," Winston remarked, a bit late.

They lost sight of the spotlights as the dropship flew through the opening and now encircled the middle level of the tower. Trying to fly over to the first landing zone.

"Okay first group, you're up!" their furry leader called out, calling them to the door.

They complied; Genji, Hana, and Nathan going up to the ramp and watching as the LZ came into view. When it did fully, they immediately saw figures on the open space. They were dressed in dark clothing and were clearly armed. They didn't look Talon, but that didn't excuse that they appeared to be pointing weapons at them.

"Wait, is that a-!"

Nathan didn't even get to finish his sentence as one of the figures launched a rocket at them, the projectile narrowly missing them as the dropship veered heavily to left and made some of the occupants lose balance. Quickly regaining it a second later, the agents opened fire on the men on the ground who fired back. DVa, a bit quick on her mechanical heels, jumped out of the dropship and flew her mech to the landing zone to take them head-on.

"Least we know they have fucking anti-air!" the Courier cursed, unslinging his sniper rifle and sighting it.

Scanning the area, he quickly guided his crosshairs to the first figure with the RPG and fired off the potent 8mm round to his throat. Making him drop to the ground in a pink mist. Cranking the bolt, his eyes darted to find another RPG. He does, Nathan sweeping the rifle to him, trying to keep the crosshair still while on a moving platform. Confident enough, he fires off another shot but instead of hitting his chest the round hits the warhead itself, causing the operator to explode and even affect others who were caught in the blast.

"Whoo! Nice one!" McCree congratulated over the gunfire.

With the narrow opening the man with the Mauser created, the dropship hovered closer to the ground only taking small-arms fire.

"We must press on! Go!" Genji shouted, hopping off the ship and expertly dispatching targets with shuriken.

"Be careful, all of you!" their Medic wished to them.

As soon as the Courier got his boots on the ground, the dropship flew away and rounded the building.

Immediately, the Courier was unleashing a hail of gunfire with his carbine and took out targets as he weaved through the incoming rounds. Even with the sound of the firefight encompassing them, he heard hurried footfalls to his right and saw a masked man running at him with a blade. Quickly, he batted the knife away with the barrel of his rifle and made the man stumble to the railing. The Courier then grabbed the man's arm and jacket before tripping him and throwing him off the tower. The man screaming as he tumbled through the air before it gradually became fainter.

Eventually, the agents overpowered the enemy forces – either killing them off or making them retreat further into the building. The three then regrouped in the middle of the balcony.

"I will go left and strike them from behind," Genji stated, gesturing to another entrance near the larger one. "We should meet up at the control center with the other group."

"Watch yourself, Shimada," Nathan advised.

"Yoshi!"

With that, the ninja dashed off and Nathan and Hana rushed up to the front entrance. The man taking cover by the left side, the girl staying close-by.

"Man, Genji's so cool," Hana said, rather unexpectedly. "Hope I get more footage of him."

"Uh, let's not get distracted, kid," the older man requested of her, furrowing his eyebrows under that mask.

'Footage? The hell is she talking about?'

Shaking his head, he exits the cover with the muzzle raised and sees the room. It's white and mostly clean, the first thing coming into view is a receptionist desk in front of him and a space module on the right, where the rest of the hallway stretched out onto. Leading to the center.

"I'll go through here," Nathan said, pointing to the doorway behind the desk. "Can you handle the hallway?"

"I'm in a mech," she answered, her face scrunched up.

"I know you are. I meant that… Augh, let's just move up. They're waiting."

The helmeted man hops over the desk with the rifle still pointing forward. Hana marched her mech down to the hallway, her "feet" thumping along the ground.

Climbing a small set of stairs, he was about to go left until gunfire from that direction made him take cover against the black wall. Machine gun fire chipping away at the wall, Nathan being too suppressed to fire back. However, as the gunmen kept firing a series of turquoise holograms forming a diamond-esque hexagon appeared in front of him and all the rounds they were firing at him seemed to dissipate like dust – surprising all of them. Taking advantage of their confusion, the Courier exited from cover and shot at them both. As they fell to the ground he looked back to see there, her mech projecting that hologram until it too faded away.

"You're welcome!" she said, another silly grin on her face.

"Kid, eyes up front," he merely said.

Instantly, rifle fire started to bounce off her mech and with an annoyed grunt, she rocketed off to meet the threat and blast them with her cannons. As she did so, Nathan ran to where the dead gunners were and saw the control room in full view with hostiles all over it engaging the Pink Mech. Taking cover behind a large panel with a screen on it, he fired at them and took down those that the girl in the pink mech didn't get to first. Suddenly, a group of armed men spills out from the hallway on the far side, Nathan thinking they were reinforcements. That thought went away when a giant gorilla in white armor flew in and began to swipe at them with strong arms, sending them flying. Nathan then saw McCree come up from behind him with Dr. Ziegler in tow, a blue stream of energy stemming from her staff to the Cowboy.

Still firing upon them and whittling down their numbers, the Courier noticed the outside balcony overlooking the control center and saw men taking up position there. He fired upon them, downing one of them but making the others take cover and fire back at his position. Thinking quickly, he turns and goes down into the hallway he came, heading to a doorway that leads outside. Reaching it, he then bumps into another masked man and struggles with him as Nathan grabs ahold of his weapon. Delivering a helmeted headbutt to the masked man, his right-hand reaches to the back of his waist and comes back enshrouded in a metallic gauntlet. The weapons twin barrels erupting on impact and sending the man flying back as a cloud of blood sprayed everywhere. Looking down at his Ballistic Fist, seeing the barrels smoking and splattered with blood. The weapon he ripped away from the man being a short-barreled shotgun with a rack of shells on the side of its receivers. Nathan bends down to pick two shells up, then ejecting the spent ones on his wrist.

"Thanks," the Courier said, inserting the fresh rounds in the tube as he stepped outside.

Going up to the stairs that lead to the balcony, he could hear the men up there firing weapons and unaware that he was sneaking up on them. Reaching for his belt, he pulls out a grenade and pulls the pin off. He throws it at their emplacement and retreats into cover, hearing them scream something in Mandarin before it detonated. Running up, he sees most of them dead from the blast, executing one who was still writhing in pain on the ground and another who tried standing up. Taking the balcony for his own.

With his carbine, he starts to clean the others up, now surprised they are being attacked from another angle. As they were nearly done, Nathan looked up and saw two other men setting up a machine gun on a platform high above the center. Quickly swapping out another mag, he only got the bolt to slam home when he saw something fall from the ground and saw it was one of the goons. Looking up, he watched as Genji had his blade inside the other, before taking it out and kicking the man down to the ground. The Ninja then spotted the Courier, giving him that two-fingered salute. The Courier waved back.

The fighting on this floor had finally died down, for now, and Nathan hopped down to join the rest of the team. Among all the bodies.

"Nathan, are you all right?" Dr. Ziegler asked, the coated man. "You're covered in blood!"

"It's not mine," the Waster answered, waving off any help. "I'm fine. Check on the others."

Winston looked around, worry present on his face.

"Did anyone find any hostages?" Winston asked, concerned they weren't anywhere to be seen.

"I have not," Genji answered, sounding equally troubled. "Perhaps they are on another level?"

"Looks like we'll have to split up, again. McCree and I will go up top while Brin and Song will go down. Genji, you'll scale the around and recon any places independently of us to expedite the process. And Angela, I'm going to switch things up by having you accompany Song and Brin; Are you okay with that?"

"If that is where I'm needed, so be it," she responded confidently. "Just be careful, you two."

"Don't fret, Doc. We'll be alright," McCree reassured her, nodding his head. "You two best take care of her."

"I did once before, haven't I?" the Courier rhetorically asked.

Even though this was in fact not the first time he had to play bodyguard, there was something a bit unnerving to McCree about seeing the same man making the promise in that black armor splattered with blood. Especially odd considering that he was standing next to the woman who looked like an angel. One hell of a mean look, though…

"You did. Happy hunting."

With that the group separated once more, the Scientist and Cowboy going the other way and the Ninja going his own. The rest backtracked through the hallway and made it to the elevator. Though, a dilemma formed when they realized it wouldn't be able to fit the pink mech.

"You guys go ahead," Hana offered. "I'll fly down and meet up with you. Might do some fly-bys in the meantime."

"Are you sure, Hana?" Dr. Ziegler asked, obviously worried for the younger woman.

"Ugh, stop worrying so much, Mom! I'll be fine."

"Hana, I thought we discussed this. I told you not to-"

The elevator opened behind them with an audible "ding", interrupting them.

"Oh, your ride's here. Bye!"

The pink mech then dashed off, the thrusters spitting out a turquoise flame. She was already flying through the sky before Dr. Ziegler could get off another word off.

The two filed into the lift, Nathan shooting in the dark and pressing one of the many buttons on the panel that was below their level. The doors closing and feeling the elevator descend rapidly down the spire. They had to start somewhere.

"'Mom'?" the man questioned, quizzical expression under the helmet.

"Oh, it's a silly thing she does," Angela explained, shaking her hand and sighing. "She does it with the older agents. Calling them things like 'Grandma' or 'Dad'. I don't condone it as we do have to maintain some sense of professionalism, but Hana really is something else. Even for a nineteen-year-old."

"That young? Kid keeps finding more ways to baffle me even when she's not here. Still wondering how she got wrapped up in all of this."

"I find myself asking that question, too. Don't get me wrong, she's a sweet girl but she sometimes makes things more of a hassle than they need to be. In this line of work, I'm worried that something will happen, eventually. Oh, listen to me - I do sound like her mother. I'm only thirty-seven!"

"Wait, really?" Nathan sounded even more baffled. "I thought you were younger."

Before Angela could continue the conversation, the elevator suddenly lost power and halted to a stop. The momentum making them stumble around in the dark, Angela grabbing onto to Nathan's arm while he balanced himself against the wall, before realizing what happened.

"Oh, great, this again?" the Courier remarked, finding himself in a familiar situation.

"What now?" the Doctor asked, illuminating the dark space with her golden wings.

Recalling what he did last time, he went up to the doors and peeled them open, but only found the concrete wall of the elevator shaft and not a door. Before he thought they weren't any other options left, he then felt Angela tap on his shoulder and look behind to see her pointing to an emergency exit on the ceiling.

"Good catch," he complimented, kneeling and cupping his hands for her to climb up.

Planting a foot into his hand and clambering onto his shoulders, the Doctor could reach the panel and climb up through the opening. Nathan jumped up, getting his forearms onto the edge and receiving some assistance from Angela to get on top. Now on their feet, they look around the elevator shaft also illuminated by the Valkyrie's wings. There was a door a couple of meters above them.

"Looks like we're climbing," the Courier noted.

"Astute observation," Dr. Ziegler commented dryly.

Suddenly, they hear gunfire and explosions erupt from the top of the elevator shaft. Looking up instantly they see the cable shake rather violently and snap. The platform beneath them giving way.

"Shit!" the Courier yelled, grabbing onto a metal rung as soon as he felt his boots sink.

The elevator plummeted down the shaft, sparking and grinding along the surface, the broken end of the cable nearly whipping them as it was pulled down, as well. A few seconds later did he finally hear the crash echo up to them. Holding onto the rung for dear life, Nathan's eyes widened in realization.

"Shit, Angela!" he called out, pivoting to look behind and instantly becoming relieved to see her still there, her wings keeping her afloat midair as she held on to her own metal rung, but not as tightly as him.

"Hi…" the blonde smiled sheepishly, before looking down at her precarious position with a less enthused expression.

Static then rang into their ears, gunfire in the background.

"Guys, be advised: Do not use the elevator!" Winston yelled over the comms. "They blew out one of the cables. You're going to have to-"

"A bit late for that warning, boss!" Nathan snarled. "We're dangling like a bad flesh wound, here."

"Oh! Uh, okay, then. Sorry to hear that. What is everyone else's status?"

Hana was the next to speak.

"I think you guys should get to level twenty, quick! There are a lot of guys here and where there are bad guys, there's the objective. I'll- Hey, stop that!"

As the register of her fusion cannons echoed, Nathan and Angela looked up at the door above them marked with the number "29". Lucky guess.

They began to descend the shaft, the woman in the Valkyrie suit having a much easier time than the man climbing down a rickety emergency ladder. Upon reaching the door marked with "20", Nathan began peeling it apart and opened to reveal another sterile white room, even hearing the pink mech not too far. However, just as he got his boots on the ground, he noticed the six men in front of him with their backs to him – anticipating the mech from their front. The armed thug closest to him on the right turned his head around and jumped when he saw the man in black armor behind them. The Courier hopped off his heels before he could get a shot off.

"Nathan, wait-!" Dr. Ziegler tried to call but it was already too late.

In an instant, the Courier clutched the Ballistic Fist on his right and pulled out his .45 with the left, making a dash for the goon closest to him on his left. He fires off a round at the man who spotted him first, sending him to the ground writhing. The man he charged didn't have time to react before his face met the pressure plate on the fist, setting off the shotgun barrels and instantly ending his life as a chunk of his head was blown off. Quickly, he grabbed the corpse by the throat and held it up to use as a meat-shield. The remaining four were now fully aware of the tall, armored man behind them and started to panic as they tried to fight back.

The Courier then shot at two others, double-tapping them each and killing them instantly. With the meat-shield still in hand, he turned with his pistol to face the last two and fired to only have the muzzle bumped away from one of them charging at him. Dropping both the empty handgun and the corpse, he blocks an oncoming right hook and jabs his enemy right under the ribs. The wind knocked out of him, a right hook to the face sends him twirling and gives the Waster the opportunity to wrap his left arm around his throat. His hostage's arms trying to claw at his Pip-Boy.

The last man standing, panicking, fires his weapon wildly but only manages to hit his own comrade and the space around him. Taking advantage of this, the Courier pulls up All-American and fires from the hip. Able to land multiple shots on him thanks to the short range and painting the wall behind him. As that man's body crumples with 5.56-millimeter holes in his flesh, the Waster tightens his grip on the barely alive man before pivoting his forearm and uttering a sickening crunch. The body flops to the floor and joins the five others in their massive pool of blood. Staining the floor that was once as white as the moon.

Nathan was a touch winded after that short little spat, feeling his breath fog up the inside of his helmet.

"Nathan…" he heard Dr. Ziegler's voice approaching from behind. "Are you-!"

Angela jumped as the Courier twisted around, his carbine in one hand, and fired two shots at the first man he sent writhing to the ground. Finishing him off just in time, as his body slumped back and let a handgun clatter to the floor and onto a pool of blood. He stared at the dead man for a moment, catching his breath, before his eyes darted to the right and saw the Mech Pilot in the doorway staring at him with her mouth agape. Couldn't tell if it was horror, awe, or both on the young woman's face.

"…Woah…"

The Waster just stared at her with his red eyes, raising his head slightly as if to come up with a response. Their comms erupted to life after, again.

"Everyone, I have found the hostages," Genji called out to them, but hushed. "They are being held in a restaurant in the eastern part of the gardens, the same floor Song said she was. I'll wait for all of you, first, but be prepared for resistance at the front."

"Let's go save them, then," the Field-Medic exclaimed, eager to get the people of harm's way.

"Right. Kid, you take point," the Courier ordered, picking up his 1911 and inserting a fresh mag. "Can you still do that thing with the holograms? I think we'll need it."

"Defense matrix? You bet," the Mech Pilot confirmed, reorienting her cannons.

Not wanting to waste time, the three dashed off through the gardens and cut through a path on the side. The Wastrel ignoring the fancy and clean Eastern architecture passing by. Well-trimmed flora and decorations only in his peripheral vision. Then, the sight of a large building in the distance behind a gate with concrete walls came into view. Almost instantly, they were fired upon as the sound of machine guns and rifles rocked through the air. Nathan and Angela took cover behind the Mech, rounds either dissipating or bouncing off the pink shell.

"Come on! My APM's better than this!" DVa mocked the men shooting at her.

"Kid…" the Courier grumbled, getting annoyed.

As if she got her wish, the intensity of the gunfire increased as they got past the stone walls. There, the Courier started to return fire at the hostage takers and taking them down with relative ease. When their weapons ran dry, only then did drop the Mech Pilot her barrier and unload fusion blasts onto them. Her efforts seemingly double when their Medic tethers the electrifying blue stream of energy at her. Clearing the courtyard, they see the building has two entrances flanking them on either side.

"Okay, we'll break off," Nathan said, pointing to the right entrance. "Kid, you head in there and we'll go through the other entrance. Can you handle that?"

"Of course, and when are you gonna stop calling me 'kid'?" she asked, annoyed at how often he's been using that word.

"When I'll be younger than you, which is never." he said, bluntly "Now, let's get this over with!"

The group separated, Nathan and Angela heading to the entrance behind them. Going through the doorway, they proceed to go down a hallway that led further into the building. With his carbine at the ready, the Courier hugged the wall and peered around the corner. He spotted the hostages, all grouped up in the center as their captors surrounded them. Some of the tables were upturned, to be used as makeshift cover, clearly upset from all the gunfire outside. And only a second later did gunfire from one of the tables force Nathan to retreat behind the wall. Then, he heard Song rush in and start attacking the captors, the sound of them retaliating sending the hostages into a scared frenzy. Hundreds of their rounds then going "pop" under the barrier. Slapping a fresh mag in, Nathan rushed forth from cover and raised his muzzle to pick them off. However, as soon as he did that, he felt the blue stream emanating from Angela's staff surge to him. Instantly, his eyes widened and his grip on the rifle tightened, feeling as if he just received a shot of Psycho. He didn't feel his inhibitions completely leave him but wanted to break something in half.

He started firing his rifle with a newfound ferocity, gunning down targets with speed and precision. Baring his teeth even if his enemies wouldn't be able to see it. The mask was intimidating enough.

"Don't let up on them!" the Doctor called out, the Courier very much obeying her as he bashed a captor with the stock of his rifle before shooting again. With the combined strength of the Pink Mech and the almost unhinged Wastelander, the hostage-takers were taken down one by one until one of the last fell to the ground and the gunfire stopped. There were now only three left, and they all had the bright idea to each take a captive hostage and point a gun at their heads. Carefully, Nathan and Hana approached them with their weapons fixed on them as Angela ran over to the hostages huddled in the center. Eyes fixed on the three captors and their captives, Nathan ignored the foreign words they were yelling as he looked to Hana.

"Alright, kid. Let's-"

Suddenly, the glass windows behind them shattered as a green blur jumped down and rolled onto the ground behind them. With the momentum from the roll, Genji precisely threw a set of shuriken and stuck all of them in the back of their heads simultaneously. Only then did they let go of the poor hostages and collapse to the ground, leaving them and the Cyborg Ninja left standing.

"O? Jom meotjinde!" the Korean Girl let out, obviously amazed by what she saw.

"Like silk," Genji mused. "Sorry for hanging back but I had to wait for the opportunity to present itself. You three seemed to have it under control."

Nathan sighed, finally letting his rifle down. Relieved that they had just accomplished what they came here for. Before they could relish in the victory of the mission, their comms came to life, again.

"Uh, guys, Winston here," the Gorilla announced himself over the radio. "McCree and I are back in the dropship and making our way to your position. Get the hostages onto here quick, I spot a sizable force heading your way. Oh, uh, good job on rescuing them, too!"

As he finished, Nathan looked back to see the other three trying to gather the victims. Faces of relief and gratitude on a lot of them. An older gentleman in glasses even coming up to the tall, blood-stained, and grabbing by his hand and shaking it energetically. He didn't expect him to do that so suddenly.

"Thank you so much! Thank you!" he said in a very heavy accent, grinning madly and bobbing his head up and down.

"Uh, you're welcome," the California awkwardly replied.

"I knew Winston and Overwatch would come for us. Thank you! They said you wouldn't, but I knew you would! Come here and kill all those wángbādàn!"

"Erh… Thanks?"

After that interesting conversation, they rounded them all up and got them out to the courtyard. Just in time for them to see Orca pull into view and land right in front of them. They made a speedy exit. As much as they could achieve with a crowd of people.


Not so far and still in the same city, the Orca landed at a marketplace to drop off the Lucheng employees. Subsequently, they attracted much attention from the nightlife and a small crowd began to gather around the dropship, some of them helping the victims but many just gawking at the agents and the ship. Nathan decided to stay inside this time around, looking outside the door.

The sound of spurs made him look to see Jesse coming up to him.

"You did pretty this time around, partner," the Cowboy complimented, patting his real hand on his shoulder but then promptly wiping the glove against his trousers. "Even if you do stink of someone's innards…"

"Eh," the Wastelander shrugged it off. "I will admit though; this mission was easier than I expected. Much easier than the ones I've been sent to so far."

"Yup, always preferred things to be simple. Go there, kill that guy or save that girl, and get outta dodge. Still, it's always nice feeling like the savior. And told ya' Hana could hold her own."

Nathan looked on to still see Angela amongst the crowd, tending to whoever she could before they'd have to leave. He also spotted Hana, out of her mech and interacting with the people outside, some of them passersby and some of them the hostages themselves. Playfully signing what appeared to be photos of herself. Taking those "selfies" with them. The older man could only be still confused.

Then, a random thought hit him as he watched the two interact with the crowd. Thinking about something he hasn't thought about for some time. Something back home. His friends. Odd that it was just now and that it took this long for it to cross his mind.

'Wonder what they've been up to since I've been gone," he wondered, their faces flashing in his mind. Memories flooding it. A lot of them of Veronica, Boone, Raul, Rex, Cooper, ED-E and even some weirdo street crier he met in Freeside. He sighed as he walked back to the booth, taking his helmet off and feel the air freeze up around his sweaty skin. 'Probably not dealing with this shit.'