Chapter Text
Enough.
Be on your toes.
You don’t know who’s watching.
That’s enough!
Wraith covered her ears, despite knowing that voices couldn’t be blocked.
She was alone in her dark room laying face down on her cot.
Close the curtains no should see you.
Someone is coming down the hall.
Keep the curtains open, always know your surroundings.
Someone is stomping downstairs.
She’d be lying if she said this didn’t always happen. That it wasn’t always this bad. That she could deal with all the voices. But it would all be a lie, and she couldn’t lie to herself. Not anymore at least.
The season had been put on hold for repairs to be made in the arenas. So after the last game all legends were brought to the special compound where everyone lived during each season. They were told they had two weeks off and then they were to return to continue like normal. Which is why Wraith was here instead resting up in the ship for tomorrow’s game, struggling to get her mind in check.
The last match earlier had taken a toll, to say the least. It came down to the last five squads all trying to battle it out in round four with the ring just beginning to close. Her team had been in a terrible position. Sandwiched between two squads and being sniped at from the north by the squad who had high ground. The fourth squad was nowhere in sight. It really was awful. And the voices. As helpful as they were in combat, they were also extremely overwhelming.
You’re being sniped at
Behind you
Watch it they have you in their sights
There’s another sniper in the area
You need to heal
Behind you
You’re being aimed at watch yourself
Wraith knew they had to move. Her team had been hugging a rock trying to squeeze as best they could into the crevices to avoid being seen. Her and Lifeline were out of energy ammo and Pathfinder had run out shields. He tried his best to peak and get some shots but just ended up downed each time by the team sniping at the top of the hill.
You have to move. Now!
Back up, you’re being aimed at.
She had her portal.
She just had to pick a way point that wouldn’t get them killed.
Easy enough, right?
Going straight would mean being too vulnerable to the sniper. Swinging left meant getting too close with another team. Maybe the right but…
“Oh no,” Pathfinder said with so much cheer and enthusiasm that Wraith felt sick. She loved the MRVN but his optimism in a tight spot wasn’t always the best. “I’ve been downed! I’m sorry friends.”
Damn, Path really needed shields. She was down to her last two but she still dropped one as lifeline started to pick him up again.
There's snipers in the area.
Watch it you’re being watched!
Behind you.
Don’t move they know your position!
You’re being aimed at.
Behind you.
She had to port them out. This was bad and...behind you?
It all happened too fast. Just as she was starting to process the orange wave that passed over her, she heard a shot. A peacekeeper shot. Lifeline was downed. Another shot. Pathfinder was downed.
She clenched her fist and just as she was about to phase-
Another peacekeeper shot rang threw her ears and she was down. She instantly put up her knockdown shield and then it dawned on her that she was staring at gold.
She had picked up a gold knockdown shield.
They’re coming move!
Their attacker came into Wraith’s view. It was Bloodhound reloading their peacekeeper, their footsteps landing with a dull thud that went straight to Wraith’s headache. Wraith felt waves of heat rush over her and if it wasn't for the gold knockdown in front of her she could have swore she would be seeing red.
They’re going to finish you
There’s a sniper in the area
Bloodhound stopped right in front of Wraith, peacekeeper aimed right at her face.
You’re being aimed at.
There’s a sniper.
They’re going to end you.
It’s over.
You’ve lost.
It was too much. She could feel her chest tightening and breathing started to become harder. It was too much. There was still fighting all around them. Had no one noticed? No third party seriously? Why hadn’t she just ported out? She couldn’t breathe, she was breathing too much, she just didn’t know. Her head had begun to throb in earnest. It’s too much. It was just too loud. It was all just too much.
Wraith was face to face with the barrel of the peacekeeper, the dull metal annoyingly too close.
You’re being aimed at!
I know already.
It’s over.
I know.
You lost.
I know.
Game over.
“You did well,” Bloodhound began. “You fought hard fel-“
“Shut. Up.”
Wraith's head was pounding and she felt heavy. The heat that was coming in waves was now just clawing into her skin. She wanted to scream but what good would that do? It would only add to all the noise. All the fighting, all the damn voices.
Bloodhound is hesitating
Bloodhound is hesitating? Wraith began to pay attention once again, she was still behind her gold knockdown. Lifeline and Path’s boxes were lying a few feet away from her. They were still behind the rock that they had been hugging. Wraith looked up to find she wasn’t face to face with a barrel anymore. Bloodhound had lowered their gun and was just staring at Wraith. Wraith looked up into their eyes, well their reflective lens that their eyes hid behind.
They froze in their spot in front of her. Wraith herself felt frozen in place not only because her back was literally up against a rocky surface but to have Bloodhound's full attention like this was a bit...unnerving.
There was no facial expression to read, no eyes to look into, no mouth to look to for a frown or smile. They both snapped back to reality at the familiar sound of Gibraltar throwing his ultimate in the distant. Bloodhound looked to the direction of the sound then back to down Wraith. Before Wraith could even blink, Bloodhound threw a knife straight into Wraith’s head.
She wakes up on the respawn ship.
She sat up and rubbed her temples. Her head still felt like it was being kicked repeatedly and her chest still hurt with each breath. The voices hadn’t calmed down either.
They’re all looking at you.
They want to know why you’re like this.
Someone’s coming.
Eyes up.
“Hey.”
Wraith looked towards the source of the voice and met soft brown eyes filled with warmth.
Lifeline had put her hand on her shoulder and despite the warm eyes set in her direction the frown on her face was too obvious
“Are you alright?” Her was so smooth, soothing yet strained.
She’s worried.
She thinks you’re hurt.
Everyone is staring.
Wraith stood up abruptly forcing Lifeline to remove her hand.
“M’fine.” Wraith muttered. She stalked off looking to the ground trying to ignore all the gazes in her direction.
She didn’t find out who ended up champion and honestly this time? She didn’t care. When the ship finally landed at the dock of the Apex compound, she ignored Elliot’s call for her and locked herself in her room for some quiet. But of course that wasn’t happening.
Instead she was here, in her room, on her bed, trying to control what felt like the uncontrollable. Could she ever truly control this?
God I messed up today.
Someone’s coming to the door.
Hey stay alert.
Be aware of your surroundings.
Why didn’t I just port even if we ran into a squad it would have been better than just sitting there.
Her head did a particularly hard throb and she threw her head into her hands again. It was all too much right now. Why can’t she just have quiet?
Knock knock
Wraith was on her feet in an instant. Right someone was coming weren’t they. She took a deep breath and let out a long exhale. It was probably just Elliot wanting to hang out, calm down.
Knock knock
Just stay calm this isn’t his fault, calm down calm down. Wraith walked to her door, pressed a button on the side panel, ready to tell Elliot that maybe they could talk later or something.
The metal doors slid open and instead of the goofy holographic trickster she called her best friend standing at the door it was the well known six foot hunter.
“Bloodhound?” Wraith asked.
This is weird
This is weird.
“Good evening,” they said.
Evening? Wraith turned to look at the window by her bed and noticed that there was indeed no sunlight coming through the curtains. God how long had she been in here, feeling sorry for herself.
Wraith brought her attention back to the hunter standing casually with their arms crossed at her door as if this was a normal occurrence.
They want to ask something
They want to tell you something
Yeah no shit guys.
“I wanted to discuss something with you, if that is alright.” Bloodhound nodded as they finished their sentence.
Wraith nodded back.
“Yeah, of course,” Wraith shrugged. “What’s up?”
What could they want to talk about? Wraith and Bloodhound had never really interacted with each other. It wasn’t like they disliked each other, no, they just weren’t put in many situations where they would speak to each other both in or outside games. It’s just how things were. Not enemies nor friends. Nothing had really ever...oh.
Wraith thought back to being down behind a gold knockdown and a harsh “shut up” escaping her lips interrupting the talented hunter in front of her. Shit.
“Bloodhound listen…” Wraith started.
“Would you be interested in accompanying me on a hunt?”
What?
What?
“What?”
“We are currently on a rather short and abrupt recess of our battles,” Bloodhound explained. “I have decided to leave for a hunt during this time. And I wanted to know if you would like to accompany me.”
“I uh,” she didn’t know what to say. Bloodhound had never come to her about anything outside of the game. Hell the most they spoke outside of the game was simple nods in greeting when they passed each other in the hall, but they wanted Wraith to go with them on a hunt?
Her head throbbed again. She put a hand to her temple.
They’re being sincere.
They need an answer.
Say something.
Yeah yeah. Wraith focused. A hunt? What did that even mean? Wraith never had been hunting as far as she knew and even if she had, it probably wasn’t to the extent of Bloodhound’s. Why ask her? This was too random. Too random for Bloodhound of all people.
Bloodhound shifted where they were standing moving weight from foot to foot.
Wraith realized she hadn’t said anything in a while.
“I uh sorry Bloodhound. I-what do you mean by a hunt?”
Bloodhound stilled “I am going to a quiet, icy planet not too far from this one. There lives a beast that is infamous for how difficult it is to track. And I wouldn’t mind someone coming with me to find such an animal.”
A quiet icy planet with a beast that is hard to track. A quiet icy planet with a beast. A quiet icy planet. A quiet planet. Quiet.
Maybe you should go.
What do you have to lose at this point.
Sounds interesting.
“Yeah I would love to come.”