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“We’re hit!” Lena screamed as a thunderous blast echoed through the Orca, the whole plane banking to the right. Two soldiers fell out of their seats, belts having not been appropriately fastened.
Beside them, Moira watched from her seat, not moving even as one tumbled past her and into Commander Reyes. He pushed them into a chair, holding them there before going after the second soldier and helping them as well.
“Lena! Get this bird out of the air!”
“We’re over the Shimada woods, Commander!” Her voice rang out through the intercom, followed by a few swears and a hard bank in the opposite direction. “And we’re too hot for an emergency landing on anything shorter than a proper runway!”
Gabriel swore, before lunging for a chair as the back hatch of the Orca was ripped open. Moira did hold her hand out to help him fasten his belt, neither of them noticing as McCree stood up from his seat, peeking out the open hatch with one hand on the bars of the wall. “Hey Commander, I can see an outpost!”
When Reyes sees where McCree is, he almost jumps back up, held back only by Moira’s grip. “Jesse McCree you get the hell back here!”
Through the open hatch, they can all see a fireball making its way toward them, close enough they can feel the heat as Lena dodges spectacularly.
“Commander, I think I can get it out of commission if I land near enough.” McCree insists, ignoring Reyes’ order. “Genji, where’s my shit?”
“Genji, don’t you dare-“
Genji does dare, passing McCree a pack with a red bullseye on it. “What? He’s a grim, Commander. It's not like they can kill him.
“Reyes, he is our best bet right now.” Moira points out, still holding Reyes back as McCree slips on a parachute. “The worse thing that can happen is his chute fails to open, and he breaks every bone in his body. We’ll just track him down and picks him up if that happens.”
Reyes glares at her, aghast. “Moira!”
Another shot flies through the air and hits a propeller, making they leak a trail of dark smoke into the air. McCree looks back into the ship as he stands at the open hatch. “Commander!”
With a growl, Reyes pushes Moira’s hands off of him and turns his glare on McCree. “You had better come back in one piece or god help me.”
“No promises, Sir!” And with a grin and a salute, Jesse jumps.
—
Twigs and branches pull at his clothing, scratching at his arms as he runs near-blind through the dark forest.
“That way! Don’t lose him!”
Cursing under his breath, Jesse keeps running, ignoring the pain in his chest. He’s not worried about the amount of noise he’s making, knowing one of the men behind him tracked him by scent all the way from his landing site.
He’d already turned his beacon on, and at this point, he was just praying Lena was still in the air and able to pick him up before his pursuers catch up.
“Stop where you are!”
That’s not happening.
Jesse missteps, taking a tumble down a hill and rolling to catch himself. For a moment, there’s silence. He must have dodged his pursuers, at least for now. It won't take the wolf shifter long to catch his scent again.
He stops, catching his breath and fighting the urge to cough- grabbing at his emergency go-bag with one hand. Instantly he knows he fucked up, it's too light.
Inside are a handful of dessert-flavored ration bars, scattered shurikens on a rope, and a coin with a dragon ouroborous engraved into it.
“Fucking Genji, so that’s where my bars went!”
“This way!”
The voice is at a distance, but not quite the distance Jesse had been hoping for. If he’d had his proper bag, he would have extra stun grenades, more ammo, something to cover his tracks or cause a distraction. He knew how to lure shifters off the trail, but only with the right stuff.
He picks up Genji’s shit and runs.
It had all been a trap, in retrospect, it was apparent enough. The monster too ambiguous to send rookies in, the info too easily found but never specific enough to be helpful.
All they’d known was that there was a level two monster out in the wilderness of Northern Japan, likely hiding out in the ruins of an old village. They said he could take the form of a great wolf, which could have meant werewolf... until another report said he was seen as a wolf in the daytime as well, off the cycle of the full moon. He could be in two places at once and seemed to disappear into shadows before people’s eyes. He hunted and killed those who entered his domain, but once returned a lost child uninjured who had wandered away from home and gotten lost.
What took him from a level three to a level two were the reports claiming he’d arrived when the old wolf shrine in the forest was desecrated by local teens. Of course, those reports could have been fabricated, or he was only noticed after the event, but that’s why Blackwatch had decided to check it out, see if the creature was something that needed to be relocated or destroyed.
Mind you, there was always the chance that Talon had stumbled upon the creature as well, and either offered it sanctuary or killed it themselves. That was Talon’s usual MO anyway, envelop or destroy.
And seeing as he wasn’t of the mind to take either of those choices, he needed to escape Talon long enough to either find where Gabe and the rest of the team had dropped to or hail Tracer. Sure they’d been getting shot at when he bailed, but she was the best pilot they had. No way they shot her down.
Slowing down, Jesse noticed a light off in the distance, dim, static, but flickering wildly. Was he that close to civilization already?
He made his way toward it, slower now, and unsure, ears trained for the sound of anyone nearby, but the forest was quiet. Eerily quiet. When he broke through into the tiny shrine, the first thing he noticed was the strange fire sitting in an empty dish, beyond it a statue, a statue of a tall dog lying down, head raised high and mighty. Despite himself, Jesse stepped toward it, hand outstretched as if to feel the rough stonework.
A growl stopped him, so deep and loud he could feel it in his chest. For a second, he thought the statue had been a real dog sitting still, but no, two pairs of glowing eyes emerged from the dark of the shrine behind it, a set of brown wolves so large they dwarfed any animal he’d been before. They descended toward him, teeth bared in a sign of force.
Jesse had his arms in front of him, hands raised palm up. “Now uh... hey there, uh... pretty wolfies... I ain’t gonna hurt ya.”
One snapped its jaw at him, lunging forward only to dart back as Jesse pulled his hands away with a shriek.
Suddenly, the wolves turned their attention away from him and onto the group of men crashing into the clearing after him.
“There you are! Cornered like the damn rat you are.”
Between Talon and the wolves, Jesse preferred to take his chances against the men, but the wolves didn’t give him the option. One after another they darted past him, barreling into the group behind him.
He heard the shouts of pain before he even managed to turn around.
The wolves had descended on the group of Talon soldiers like a swarm, tearing the flesh off limbs in a bloody massacre. Jesse stood, paralyzed with fear. Wolves were wild animals, but these were no ordinary creatures. They couldn’t be. Were these the monsters they were looking for? If so, and there were two of them, he was royally fucked.
Behind the gore, something caught Jesse’s eye, a shimmer from the tree line- a sniper! In one motion, Jesse had his Peacekeeper out and readied, managing to get a shot off just as the sniper did. His shot missed. The sniper did not.
He fell back against the statue, grimacing and scrambling for his gun, but when he looked back toward the sniper’s nest, he could see the figure on the ground, a trio arrow sticking out of their back.
“What the hell?”
“What the hell, indeed.”
The voice came from beyond the group of now dead Talon soldiers.
A man emerged from the darkness, dressed warmly in a dark grey jinbei, thick red armor over the left side of his chest. His long hair was pulled into braids, red markings under his eyes. As he walked, the wolves left their prey, falling into step with him and turning their attention toward McCree.
There was no way this man was a regular human or a low-level monster.
The man took one look at him and scoffed, raising his bow and drawing it taught.
McCree was fucked, but he wasn’t about to go down without a fight. Despite the pain from the graze on his chest, he held Peacekeeper firm and high, aimed at the stranger’s head. “Now there ain’t no reason for this to get nasty here.”
The wolves began to growl, a deep note that once again filled Jesse with a particular kind of dread. “If you do not wish your death to be painful, you will drop your weapon.”
“You first.”
“This is not a negotiation. You are in my lands; therefore you must die. You may decide if you wish for a painful death or a merciful one.”
“I heard you let innocents go free. I ain’t here of no ill will! I was chased but those assholes behind ya!”
“Why were they chasing you?”
“Cause they’re assholes!”
The man’s eyes narrow before he spots McCree’s bag, forgotten during his fall. “We shall see. If you have taken nothing from the forest, then perhaps you may yet live to see this night through.”
McCree breathes a long sigh of relief, only to wince in pain. “Hey, think you can get me to a doc-“
“Where did you get this?”
The man’s voice has gone strangely still. In his hand is Genji’s coin.
Jesse feels like he’s suddenly in a far more precarious position than he was before. “Anyone ever told ya it ain’t nice to touch things that don’t belong to ya?”
The man turns toward him, furious. “WHERE DID YOU GET THIS.”
Jesse keeps his mouth shut.
In a moment the man turns from him, toward one of his wolves, only to immediately spin around again and hit Jesse across the head with his bow.
Everything goes dark at once.
—
Gabriel Reyes does not get angry easily. He couldn’t have gotten as far as he had if he let his emotions control him, after all. The constant empty promises of the SEP taught him how to control his emotions, the Omnic War made him proficient with the cold, seething kind of anger he could let simmer until he needed it.
Even so, sitting in a cheap motel room, covered in still bleeding cuts and holding a pack of ice to his swelling cheek, he has never been quite THIS angry in a very, very long time.
“Now, are you telling me you can’t track Agent McCree’s com or are you just deciding not to?”
He can’t see the agent speaking to him from the nearby Watchpoint in Tyoko, but he already knows she’s hardly paying attention. There’s no Blackwatch in Tokyo, so he had to contact Overwatch proper and, well-
“I’m sorry, Commander Reyes, but our command center doesn’t allow me to track any outside agents without authorization from my direct superior.”
“Then transfer me to your direct superior.”
“I’m afraid Captain Heiko is on leave and will not be back for two weeks.”
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“I am afraid I am not, Commander Reyes. Now if that will be all? Do call back if-“
Gabriel didn’t let her finish. He terminated the call and sat back in his chair, moving the ice to the center of his head. He hadn’t had many headaches since the SEP, but if anything were going to give him a migraine, it would be this shit show of a mission.
The creak of the door to his room had him sitting upright, staring blankly at the tablet in front of him, and ice down on the table. “Yeah?”
“Um... Commander Reyes?” Lena Oxton began, staring at him from the doorway, blanket still wrapped around her shoulder and eyes wide in fear. “Did you get through to Overwatch?”
His anger bled out of him with a single breath, replaced with pity. Poor kid had jumped from a witch’s curse to an uprising in London to this. He hadn’t wanted to take the junior agent with him, but she was the best pilot they had and had anyone else been at the helm his entire team likely would be in pieces on the forest floor right now.
“Yeah, yeah I did. Didn’t I tell you to get some rest, kid?”
She doesn’t say anything, just clutches the blanket a bit tighter over her chest and steps inside. “Genji’s being...” She thinks better of it and stops. “I just wanted to step away, and Moira said not to go outside so is it okay to sit with you?”
“Yeah, sure thing.” He scoots over on the foot of the bed, patting the seat next to him and she doesn’t hesitate, quickly gluing herself to his side. She takes a shuddering breath but doesn’t cry, too grown up for that.
“I’m sorry.”
She says it so quietly he almost doesn’t hear her. “What are you sorry for?”
“I should’ve known we were spotted. Done evasive maneuvers, or something!” She doesn’t look at him, but he’s almost sure she might be crying now. “Now Jesse’s missing, and people are dead, and it's my fault, isn’t it.”
He’s not the golden boy, or charismatic like Reinhardt. But he knows how to deal with kids who have seen too much carnage. “The way I see it, someone had to have told those fuckers we were coming. Otherwise, there’s no way anyone could have spotted your flying or caught you. You can’t prepare for everything, Oxton, and if we’d had any other pilot at the wheel, I know for a fact none of us would have made it out alive.”
“Now you’re just saying that to be nice.”
“Ask anyone. They’ll tell you I’m a mean old grump whose never nice.”
She giggles, pulling away to look at him, eyes red. “You’re not grumpy. Well, not that grumpy.”
He messes up her hair, laughing as she ducks away from him. “Think you’ll be okay to sleep in here with Moira?”
“Yeah.” She nods, “Moira’s cool. Bit scary, but I kind of like that, you know?”
“I’m not one to judge.”
Lena giggles again before moving away from him, settling into the bed and curling up under her blanket. He quietly gathers his equipment before exiting, closing the door almost silently behind him.
The safe house is too small for four people, just a flat in a building full of foreign tourists. It’s low, on the second floor with a hidden entrance through the back of the building that hasn’t been opened since the last time Gabriel used it. The windows are, and the walls are soundproof, without looking any different from the outside.
The flat itself is tiny, only a single bedroom and an all-purpose room with a kitchen along one side. Under the shelf closest to the fridge is a cupboard with a false bottom that opens up to storage for extra weapons. The third tatami mat from the bedroom door peels back to show a safe that holds the medical equipment Moira was currently using on Genji, and the coms Gabriel used to call Tokyo’s Watchpoint.
Exiting to the main room, Gabriel sees Moira cleaning up the medical supplies Genji seated by the window with a shuriken in hand, twirling it in and out of the opening of his arm.
“Genji. How are you feeling?”
Despite Tracer’s ability to bring their ship down in a controlled crash, Genji had still gone flying from his place at the back door, dragons flying after their pursuers. He hadn’t gone far, landing in a tree and making his way back to them without too much trouble, but his good arm had been scratched up something fierce, and if he died from something as stupid as an infection, Gabriel would never forgive himself.
“Adequate. I will be able to fight if need be.”
“He has an unstable fracture of his left wrist.” Moira corrects. “I have it splinted, but without a proper biotic emitter or healer I’d rather he not put any weight on it.”
“And aren’t you a healer?”
Moira shoots Gabriel an exhausted look and visibly rolls her eyes. “He has refused further help.”
“I will heal.” Genji shoots back at her, unfazed. “If you will both recall, I have been through worse.”
“And its Mercy’s magic that saved you.” Gabriel reminds him. “You’re no use to me if you are not at 100 percent.”
Genji says nothing to that, but with Moira stands he does flinch away. In response, she throws her arms up. “I am going to bed. If you change your mind, you can tell me in the morning.”
Gabriel steps aside to let her pass, moving instead to sit next to Genji. Once the door to the bedroom was shut, he takes a weary breath, pulling his beanie off his head and balling it up in his fist. He can feel Genji’s eyes on him.
“Do you have McCree’s location?”
“Nah. The agent I spoke to was unable to help.”
“Unable or unwilling?”
He doesn’t respond to that, but to his surprise, after a minute Genji touches his human hand to his arm.
“I believe he is alive and well.”
“Yeah?”
“Hai. My dragon... she says he is well. I believe he has found an ally in the forest.”
“Yeah, those are the Shimada woods we were over when he jumped, right? Any idea what sort of critters live in there?”
“Many spirits, both cruel and benevolent.” Genji is silent for a moment, before looking back down at the shuriken. “My brother knew more than I do. He... he studied the woods, would leave offerings in the shrines. I never paid much attention.”
Gabriel hums before noticing something. “Hey, where’d your necklace go?”
—
Jesse wakes all at once.
His eyes take a moment to adjust to the new lighting as he looks about in alarm. He’s tied to a chair in what seems to be the middle of a one-room shack. The walls look like they’re made out of giant logs stacked on top of each other one by one, with a small fire in the center of the room. A hole at the very top of the room filters out the pale white smoke.
He tests the give of the ropes around his hands, finds they’re tied tight. Unfortunate. Peacekeeper is missing as are his shoes, his hat, and his survival bag is nowhere to be seen. Neither is the man who saved him from Talon. He isn’t however alone in the room.
Sitting on the other side of the campfire from him is one of the giant wolves from the shrine. Her pelt is a cool brown, somewhat dirty looking almost beije, with a firm meets her paws her eyes are piercing blue looking right at him through the flames. He swallows nervously and sits up a little straighter.
“Don’t suppose you’d be able to let me out of here would you?”
The wolf looks at him links slowly once and then looks away resting in her face on her paws looking away from him towards the door he hadn’t noticed before he struggles once more against his binds before giving up.
Whoever his savior... attacker... kidnapper was, hopefully, they could sort of this confusion peacefully, and maybe he’d be able to help lead Jesse out of here.
The only warning Jesse gets as to the stranger’s arrival is the excitement of the wolf in front of him. She looks up only a second before the door to the hut opens, the man from earlier entering with his bow strapped against his chest, dark clothing stained red and brown.
He looks up, locking eyes with Jesse before humming and stepping forward. The other wolf enters behind him, mouth stained red. Although the image of terrifying monsters is ruined by the excitement, the second wolf has at seeing the first, flopping onto its partner as they both relax by the fire.
Jesse almost smiles, before remembering that the red around both wolves mouths is likely human blood.
“Why are you here.”
The archer’s voice is rough like he hasn’t used it in a while, and Jesse guesses that might be the case. From what he remembers in the mission log, the Shimada’s estate forest was guarded ridiculously well. Only a few could traverse it safely, and just to leave offerings at shrines to the spirits and creatures who resided in it.
“Well, seeing as you were the one who brought me here, I was hoping you could tell me.”
The archer does not look amused. He steps toward Jesse, untying something from his hip and pulling it into the light so Jesse could see Genji’s survival bag. “You do not look like the kind of man able to utilize shurikens.”
“You never know; I could be a right ninja if I wanted to.”
“I doubt that.”
“Fine, you got me. That bag belongs to a friend of mine. We got our survival shit switched up when our plane went down, and he’s kind of on a Naruto spree.”
The archer narrows his eyes at him. “I’m sure.”
“No lie, that sentence is a hundred percent honest.”
The archer tosses the bag aside. “When I went back to the shrine to gather your things, there were men there looking for you.”
Jesse feels a shot of fear go down into his gut. “Fuck. Did they track you back here? Did they get my shit?”
His com may have been broken, but it could still help Talon hack into their secure channels.
“The answer to both of your questions is no. But they did speak to me about you.”
“Yeah? What’d they say?”
“That you’re an American hunter with no regards for the spirits who claim this forest as their home, and that I would receive financial compensation in return for handing you over.”
“Oh, well.” Jesse curses himself. “What’re your thoughts on all that?”
“It was a tempting offer.”
Jesse felt his hopes fall. “You don’t wanna listen to them. Talon’s nothing but a group of glorified terrorists.”
The archer watches him for a moment before humming. “Either way, they made the mistake of claiming my aid would honor my ancestors. I would rather die than do anything to bring them honor.”
“Sounds like we come from a similar background then.”
He can feel the man’s eyes looking him up and down. To Jesse’s surprise, he smiles. “I doubt that.”
Okay. Rude.
“Regardless.” The archer continues. “While I am unlikely to hand you over to this... Talon, as you call them. I have yet to decide your ultimate fate.”
“You could always just let me go?” Jesse can’t help but try, wearing his best grin.”
The other man doesn’t take the bait, tone even and unamused. “Perhaps. We shall see how well you answer my questions.” He takes a moment to ruffle through the survival bag. He takes out the com and Jesse can’t hide his glee at seeing it. As long as its operational, the team can track him. “This is military grade. Nearly undetectable unless you are looking for it directly. But I don’t recognize this logo. Who are you and who do you work for?”
“Going right for the meat of things, ain’t ya.”
The man tilts his head but says nothing.
“The name’s Jesse McCree, and would you believe me if I said I was with Overwatch?”
“Is that the truth?”
“Its a bit more complicated, but that’s the long and short of it. My cheques get signed by Overwatch accountants, and I live on base most of the time. They ain’t the ones who directly sent me out here, but depending on what we found they’d likely get involved after the fact.”
The man watches him for a moment before looking down at the com in his hand. “If you are involved in Overwatch you must be here to hunt down the spirits in these forests.”
“Nah, we only hunt down the dangerous monsters.”
“That is not how the stories go.”
Jesse shrugs. “Can’t believe everything you here. But anyway, we were here about Talon. Intel said they were onto something in here, so we came to find out what that was. My best guess is there were here to capture or befriend one of those spirits that live here. You have some old ones in here, don’t you?”
The other man says nothing.
“I’m not trying to get info out of ya, I swear. A friend of mine used to live in Hanamura, he’s the one who encouraged us to come here and help keep the forest safe. Said it was important to the people here. Y'all have some kind of bond to it.”
“Is that who gave you this coin?” He’s holding the pendant with the dragon ouroborous up. It sparkles in the light of the fire, making the dragons look as if they were moving.
“Might’a belonged to him.” Jesse answers after a long moment. “Can’t rightly remember.”
“This is a sign of the Shimada clan.” The man continues, looking down at the pendant before tossing it aside. Jesse straightens in his seat, but the man makes no further actions towards Genji’s items. “If your friend was a member of the clan, then you are my enemy.”
“Hey, the Shimadas tried to kill my friend. Like, tore him to bits and left him for dead. Believe me when I say we ain’t with them.”
“No half-decent Shimada would leave someone for dead. That’s sloppy work.”
“Well, I guess it's a good thing I ain't never heard of a Shimada being half decent.”
The man’s lips pull into a smile before he falls serious again. “You have no idea who I am. Do you.”
“I don’t, no,” Jesse admits. “But I also don’t right care. Listen, I don’t mean you any harm. Hell, all I want is to get out of this forest and back to my team. That’s what you want too, isn’t it? To get people out of your forest?”
“It is not my forest.” The man insists. “I may protect it-“
He cuts off suddenly, looking down at his wolves. They both have their heads facing the doorway, ears twitching. One suddenly stands, growling deep in its chest as the other moves to stand by the man.
“We are no longer alone.”
“Is it Talon? Did they follow you?”
“I do not leave a trail.”
“Well, you must have!”
The archer shot him a glare before grabbing his bow. He’s halfway to the door before Jesse realizes what he’s doing. “Hey! What about me!”
The archer stops, looking back, confused. “What about you?”
“Ain’t ya going to let me go?”
“Why? You barely answered my questions to any level of satisfaction, and I still do not know what side you are on.”
“Okay listen-“
He doesn’t. Between one breath and the next, the archer and both dogs are gone.
“Well, fuck.”
—
From the cover of the trees, Hanzo could see six men on the hill by his cabin. Their faces were covered completely, dressed in blacks and brown to blend into the surroundings. Kenji, sitting far below by the food of the tree had already noted the one by the front as a magic user. Hanzo could sense Ume slowly making her way behind the men to flank and ensure they were their only intruders.
Perhaps his prisoner was correct in assuming these men were Talon, but it did not change the fact that for the first time in his self-imposed exile, someone had found his home.
Hanzo’s magic was not strong like his mother’s, nor did he excel in disguises like his brother had. But as a summoner, there was one thing he could do very, very well.
Knocking an arrow to his bow, he focused on the group in front of him. One clean hit should take them all out...
He draws his bow tight, aiming-
Pain like fire erupts from his right arm, causing him to misfire, the arrow landing just off of his target.
Hanzo dropped his bow, steadying himself against the trunk of the tree as blood, left hand grabbing at his right arm and coming back red with blood. He could hear Kenji fighting with the gunman who had flanked them, already tearing into the man’s throat. Ume howled out a warning that the other men were on the move, but with his bow gone Hanzo had no way of defending himself. He heard another gun cock nearby and braced.
In a second, he heard what must have been at least six shots fired one after another like the rattle of a machine gun. Six thumps followed, then silence.
In the doorway of the cabin stands his prisoner, oversized revolver in hand and still smoking. Hanzo feels his breath catch in his throat, sure that he will be next, but when Jesse McCree’s gaze reaches him, the man’s eyes fill with worry.
“Oh shit, you okay up there?”
As if pointedly ignoring his own distrust, Ume trots out from the woods and goes right up to the other man, bumping his hand with his nose like she does to Hanzo when she wants affection.
Traitor.
With Ume’s betrayal distracting him somewhat from the pain in his arm, Hanzo jumps down from the tree, McCree at his side almost immediately. “Shit. Did you get shot?”
Hanzo shrugs off his overcoat, eyes narrowing at the cut in it before checking his arm. There was undoubtedly blood, but also a long line cutting across his arm just below the brand on his shoulder. “Just a graze. It was more unexpected than anything.”
McCree is strangely silent for a moment, and Hanzo flinches away when he feels his touch along the brand on his arm.
The brand-
“Guess this explains your reaction to hearing my friend was a Shimada... the hell did they do to you?”
“Nothing I did not deserve.” Hanzo insists, pulling away from McCree, and pulling a rag from the bag on his hip to wrap his arm. “If you are born into the clan, you remain a Shimada despite everything. I received the brand in retaliation for thoughts of my freedom.”
McCree steps back up to him, taking the rag from him and carefully wrapping it around Hanzo’s arm securely. “That’s fucked up.”
“Worse things happened to those who attempted to go through with plans of escape,” Hanzo says with a weary sigh, replacing his overcoat once the makeshift bandage is in place.
Kenji and Ume are busy nosing through the bodies of the dead Talon soldiers, destroying electronics or anything that could be used as a tracer. No doubt the location of their cabin was already communicated before their deaths, so it appeared his home would have to be abandoned. He had a few temporary hideouts that could be converted to something more permanent before winter came, but first, he would have to rid the forest of its new infestation.
“If I were to lead you safely from the forest, would your people swear to rid these scavengers from the area?”
“Yeah,” Jesse assures him. “Of course!”
“Very well then.” Hanzo picks his bow up from the ground, checking for damage before whistling once. Instantly both wolves leave their games and sprint into the woods. Hanzo darts after them, stopping only once to fix McCree with a glare. “Do try and keep up.”
And with that, he disappears. Swearing, McCree runs after him.
—
Usually, Reyes would be furious to learn one of his soldiers brought their personal cell phone with them on a mission. But when Lena offered to reach out to her friend Winston and held up her phone, Reyes could kiss her.
“Winston here. Lena! How are you doing?”
“Hiya Winston! I’m here with Commander Reyes right now. We really need your help.”
Despite not being able to see the cursed scientist, Reyes knows he’s stammering and fixing his glasses. He might be walking around- or swinging around if he got the tire swing request Ana was dying over approved. They had a few agents who, like Lena and Winston, had been given unbreakable curses, but only Winston took one look at his new form and embraced the beast life.
(Although privately, Reyes doubted wild gorillas were able to eat peanut butter.)
“Afternoon Agent Winston.”
“Commander Reyes! Uh, it is good to- what did you both need from me?”
Lena puts her face down in her hands, hiding her grin while Reyes just takes the phone from her, switching it off the speaker. “Agent Winston, I’m going to need you to trace McCree’s com for me. ID 104JJM84. He should have his locator on and pulsing, but we were stonewalled by Tokyo, and you’re the only one who can get access to the radio frequencies in this country without them knowing.”
“I don’t have access to anything that can covertly reach radio frequencies! I’m just an agent!”
“Winston, Ana and I both already know about Athena. If we were mad, you would already know we know.”
He can hear Winston sputtering on the other end before he sighs softly. “All right, Commander Reyes. I... you said Agent McCree, yes? The one with the strange shoes?”
“Is that really what you remember about him? His shoes?”
He can see Lena collapse into giggles, but he tries to ignore her. He just doesn’t understand kids these days.
“Well, they are quite striking... ah! Athena has a lock on his location already- Hm... That’s strange.”
Reyes feels a drop of nervousness in the pit of his stomach. “What is it?”
“It appears there is a third party already tracking him. Makes it easier for Athena...”
“Who the hell is tracking my agent?”
“Well,” Lena interrupts, all traces of laughter gone. “I thought only captains or higher have our agent com codes?”
“Yeah,” Reyes growls. “And medical staff...”
Winston and Lena both fall silent as Reyes considers his next moves.
“Agent Winston, I’m going to need you to help connect my com to McCree’s, use the short distance secure line and buff it so I can talk to him as soon as possible.”
“Understood!” Winston confirms, ending the call.
Reyes turns back to the junior agent, handing over her phone. “Agent Tracer, I’m going to need you to keep Moira distracted. Are you comfortable doing that?”
“Yes, sir!” Tracer exclaims, jumping to her feet and saluting before jumping backward in time with a shock of blue. She reappears on the bed wrapped in a blanket, skin pale and trembling.
Reyes squeezes her shoulder before heading into the main room. Moira is in the kitchen warming a meal up with Genji sitting nearby at the table, staring at an untouched sandwich.
“Moira, Lean started shaking while I was doing my reports. Think she might be shellshocked.”
Moira hums, shutting off the stove and wiping her hands. “I feared this might happen with her. She’s far too junior to be out on missions like this.”
“I do not disagree with you.”
He waits for her to pass, closing the door behind her. Instantly he’s at Genji’s side, pulling at his arm and holding a finger to his lips.
Genji looks at him curiously, but quickly nods and picks up his weapons. They leave without another word.
—
“Hey Archer, can I ask you another question?”
With a bone-weary sigh, Hanzo slows down, facing McCree with his arms crossed. “You asked for my name, and I said no. You’ve asked about the forest and about where we are going. Does your curiosity know no end?”
Jesse shrugs, smile not fazed in the least. “Pretty sure my CO would tell ya that’s right. So, can I ask another?”
“Fine.”
“So I get that you’re a summoner, right?”
“I am assuming this is not the ONE further question I am allowing you, but yes. I am.”
Jesse motions toward where Ume and Kenji are waiting for them a ways ahead. “They your familiars? I never heard of a summoner with two.”
“They are not,” Hanzo explains after a moment. “They are spirits of the wood I used to play with as a child. Growing up near the forest, I would join my mother to place offerings at the shrine. She was a priestess before her marriage to my father, you see. After... after the clan fell, I was injured and not in a good state of mind. They found me and protected me from the assassins sent to kill me. I repay them by helping them protect the forest.”
“That’s cool,” Jesse comments, noting the possibility that the high-level monster in the woods may be the wolves themselves, not Hanzo.
“Now I believe it is my turn to ask a question.”
“Sounds fair. Shoot.”
Hanzo motions toward his gun. “I saw you shoot six shots with perfect accuracy in only a heartbeat. How?”
“I’ve got the devil in me.”
Hanzo blinks at him, eyes narrowing in confusion. “Explain.”
“To put it simply, I made a deal at the crossroads for the power to avenge my family. The devil gave me it and more, and I got to serve them this my job is done. Not that I even know what that job is.”
Hanzo nods. “And what if you die before that?”
“Well that’s part of the ‘and more’ I mentioned,” Jesse says with a grin. “I can’t die.”
Hanzo completely stops. “No. I refuse to believe it.”
“You don’t have to believe it for it to be real, you know.” Jesse keeps walking, and after a moment Hanzo jogs up to join him. “I’ve been shot, stabbed, pierced through the heart and even had my stomach cut open. That one wasn’t pleasant, but the good doctor knocked me out soon as it happened so I wouldn’t have to deal with the pain on the way back to base.”
“Do you heal quickly?”
“No faster than a normal human, far as I can tell. But one of the doctors we’ve got is a literal miracle worker. She makes sure I get put back together in the right order. Hell, she managed to bring back my Shimada buddy from death’s door.”
“You mentioned your friend before... who was he?”
“Hm? Oh. Genji Shimada. He was the younger son of the big guy.”
“Yes, I am aware of who he was.” Hanzo spits out. “You must be incorrect. Genji Shimada died. He was killed by his brother.”
“Nope! Big brother Shimada left him there for dead.” Jesse grins at him. “Guess he was sloppy.”
Hanzo huffs but says nothing further.
Both men jump as a crackle of static fills the air. Cursing, Jesse digs into his bag until he pulls out his com. “Hello? Hello! Can anyone hear me? This is Agent McCree!”
“Shit kid, am I glad to be hearing from you.”
Jesse lets out a laugh of relief, smiling up at Hanzo. “Hey, jefe. You guys good?”
“No. Looks like someone on our team betrayed us to Talon. They’ve been tracking your com.”
Hanzo swears. Jesse nods at him before returning to his com. “That explains a whole bunch. I met a friend who can fight, and they ambushed us at his house.”
“I don’t like that you brought a civilian into this, but is there any chance he can lead you out of there? We don’t have the kind of manpower to kick Talon out of here right now, so I want us to group up and ship out.”
“Tell them to go to the eastern edge of old Hanamura, there’s a dirt path that will take them to a dragon shrine. It was a private shrine for the Shimada family, but its close enough to the edge of the forest for your people to find with ease.”
Jesse nods. “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah.” Reyes answers. “We’ll meet you there. And Jesse? Try not to get yourself hurt.”
—
The shrine is eerily silent. Overgrown as it is, Reyes expected to see insects, birds or vermin but he was almost willing to bet even the wind was slowing down to avoid making noise.
The shrine itself had a wooden structure protecting it from the elements, the stone maw of a dragon frozen mid-growl and claws clenched against the pedestal it stood on. Having seen Genji’s familiar up close a few times, Reyes was more than impressed by the statue’s accuracy.
Genji has no qualms against making noise as he stomps back into cover, sheathing his sword. “No sign of them.”
Reyes hums, turning away from the statue to look at his agent. “What’s got you in a mood, Genji? You know something I don’t?”
For a long moment, Genji says nothing, arms crossed and looking back into the forest proper. “I think I know who Jesse’s guide is.”
“Yeah? Is McCree in danger?”
Genji doesn’t answer.
Reyes presses on. “Genji-”
“Shh!”
For a moment, Reyes considers slapping Genji upside the head, but then he sees the wolf.
It’s standing just out of the line of trees by the shrine, fur thick and brown. Reyes reaches for his shotguns, but Genji stops him with a hand.
With sure steps, Genji walks toward it, kneeling on the dirty ground with hands on his thighs. The wolf sniffs him once, before nuzzling him under his chin plate. Genji takes it off, smiling for the first time in he can’t recall how long. “Hello, Kenji.”
The wolf barks once then turn to look back into the forest, just in time to see Hanzo and Jesse emerging with another wolf leading their way.
Hanzo freezes the moment he sees his brother, looking ready to bolt. Jesse looks from one brother to the other, not understanding. “Archer? You good?”
Genji stands, chin guard falling to the ground. “Brother.” Without prompting, a green glow emerges from his back, a fractured dragon holding on to his left shoulder, teeth bared in a growl.
Reyes has his shotguns out, aimed at Hanzo’s head. “Is nothing going to go right this goddam mission?
Jesse steps in front of Hanzo, but Genji is faster, his dragon moving through both men to attack the Talon soldiers making their way toward them. Hanzo can't breathe, but when Jesse looks at him, his eyes are filled with tears.
The battle is swift and decidedly one-sided. Hanzo draws on the power of his familiars, and alongside Genji Talon stands no chance. Reyes shoots those who attempt to flank behind the shrine, and even Jesse gets to call on deadeye once more. In between them all are the wolves, bloodthirsty and vicious.
And just like that, its over, silence filling the clearing once more until Reyes’ pocket rings with a shrill cry.
“Reyes here.”
“Commander!” Lena’s panicked voice calls out. “Moira’s gone! She said something about using the loo a few minutes back, but when I blinked out she was gone! I can’t find her in the area either!”
“Yeah, I expected her to take off,” Reyes admits. “Have Winston send you my location and meet up with us. We’re going home- Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
Hanzo stops mid-step, all eyes looking at him as he steps back from the edge of the forest. “Home? I delivered you your agent, so I assumed I was no longer needed?”
Reyes laughs out loud to that. “We could use that kind of power in Blackwatch. What do you say?”
Hanzo wrinkles his brow in confusion before looking at Jesse, and then to Genji. Genji turns away. “I am unsure if that is the best course of action. You are aware of who I am, yes?”
Instead of Reyes, Genji is the one to speak. “Were you the one who hunted down the rest of our family after... after the fight?”
“Not alone,” Hanzo answers, then gestures to the wolves, both of whom are sitting at the base of the dragon statue, cleaning the blood from their fur. “They found me, nursed me back from the place I was at. They helped me find those who ordered your death and sneak into their homes without being found. And they led me to your friend when he was running from Talon.”
Genji nods then places his hand on Hanzo’s shoulder. “I thank you, Brother.”
Hanzo smiles, relieved.
“But I do not forgive you. I do not know if I ever will.”
Genji leaves without another word, and Hanzo deflates.
“He’ll warm up to you eventually,” McCree assures him, clapping a hand onto Hanzo’s upper back and jolting him into glaring at the taller man. “And hey, if you come with us it’ll give you a chance to earn his forgiveness, right?”
Hanzo shakes his head, turning toward the shrine, only to stop cold when he finds the wolves gone. “McCree, have you seen the wolves?”
They both look around, but there’s no trace of them, and finally, Jesse whistles out a long breath. “Shit. Think maybe they agree with me? I mean, if they ain’t around then they must think you don’t need them anymore, right?”
After a long moment, Hanzo smiles. “Perhaps you are correct.”
“It’s rare, but I have my moments of wisdom, Archer.”
“Please, call me Hanzo.”
“Hanzo,” McCree repeats, feeling the word out in his mouth. He grins and holds out his hand for a shake. “In that case, I guess you’d better start calling me Jesse.”