Overwatch: The Lost Soldier

Staring at the man that lay there, both women had stopped momentarily, Tracer from helping Jack and Mei warming themselves by the fire. Lena started and moved to help Jack, while getting herself an eyeful of the former soldier. The look on her face wasn't exactly one of interest, but one of appraisal, as though she approved of how he was built and put together.

Slowly, the spec ops soldier started to pick himself up, using his armchair as a steadying point. He finally managed to stand upright, though he was still wobbling a fair bit. Clearly, Mike wasn't the shy type, as he seemed unfazed by the stares he had picked up from both Tracer and Mei.

"What? You've never seen a naked man before?" he asked them groggily.

"Yes, just not so...." Mei stuttered, blushing like an errant schoolgirl. She struggled to find the words to say, having not been in such a position before. Jack looked up from working on Zarya and shook his head.

"Ugh! Go get some clothes on Mike, before you give the poor girl an aneurism from staring at your naked ass," Jack growled as he fished the first bullet from Zarya's shoulder wound. Working on the Russian woman beneath his hands was a one-person job, so he shooed Tracer away to get warm.

"I guess I should at that," Mike chuckled, as he shuffled into his bedroom, closing the door behind him. As he disappeared behind the door, Mei turned back to warming herself by the fire. Standing right next to her, Lena smiled at her knowingly. She was sure that some racy thoughts were whirling through the older woman's mind.

"A well-built chap, if I ever saw one," Tracer remarked off-handedly. "Lots of power in those legs of his, wouldn't you say?" she teased Mei.

Blushing harder, the thick, Chinese woman, shot a glance back at the door, then to Lena and said, "And here I thought you only liked girls."

"What? Just because I'm a lesbian, doesn't mean that I'm dead. I do like getting a good look at blokes like him, from time to time," Tracer fired back.

Listening to the banter, Jack could only smile and laugh, glad to see that both ladies were coping well with the latest sequence of events. Especially Mei, who wasn't a soldier or really proficient at combat. But she had held her ground and tried to help Zarya, while under fire, and Jack could respect that.

The door opened and out popped Mike, wearing a pair of dark tan khakis and a black, long sleeved shirt that outlined his musculature. He glanced over to where Jack stood, hunched over the bloodied Russian soldier, digging out the bullet that had popped her knee.

"Need a hand there Jack?"

"Nah. The third one that hit, went right though her, though she was quite lucky. It bypassed her intestines, going straight out, but she still lost a lot of blood," the old soldier stated as he finished tying off Zarya's dressings. He held his hands up, covered with blood and Mike nodded to a small, but functional bathroom that stood opposite the bedroom.

While Jack moved to get cleaned up, Mike went to a squat cupboard that stood beneath the south facing window and fished out several blankets. Once he had the bundle in his arms, he marched over to the fireplace, depositing them on the floor. Both Mei and Tracer looked at him strangely for a moment, until realization dawned on their faces. They went to work, creating a rudimentary, if comfortable, mattress for Zarya to lie on.

Michael checked the dressings that Jack had done and finding them satisfactory, he picked up the Russian bodybuilder. Though he strained with the effort, he managed to get her to the blanket pile, without jostling her too much. Once situated, he went and pulled another blanket out of the cupboard, this one thick and heavy. As he settled it on the pink haired soldier, he stood up.

"Mind the fire, so that it doesn't die. I'll handle the drinks and such," he ordered Mei. In a heartbeat, he had turned back to his small kitchenette and set a kettle onto boil. Reaching into his fridge, Mike removed a covered dish, inspected it, then placed it into his small oven, to heat up. It didn't take long before the water had started boiling, and Mike removed it, before reaching into the cupboard above the stove.

"Coffee or tea?"

"Tea please!" Mei said, as she stoked the fire with some smallish logs that she had placed over the large embers. The wood pile was in need of replenishing, but there was enough to heat the cabin for the night.

"I'll have a coffee," Jack stated, as he came out of the bathroom and went straight to the fire. He started warming himself as Tracer echoed his request, when another voice said, "Did someone say coffee? Or pie?"

Starting, Jack and Lena knelt next to Zarya, who had been the source of the voice. They were all glad that she had recovered enough where she was conscious. Jack couldn't help but laugh at what she had said though.

"First thing you say after being patched up, is asking for food?" Jack joked.

"Well, considering the amount of blood that she lost out there, she'll need it," Mike said as he walked up with a plate of steaming apple pie in each hand. He handed them to the ladies first, before grabbing another two plates and handing them to Jack. The team accepted them with thanks, though Zarya had to be fed her pie, much her frustration and the others' amusement.

Once finished, the tea and coffees were handed out, all of them made to what each team member wanted. As they were drinking, Mike stood by the window, looking out into the failing day, brooding in silence. The sky had begun darkening and night was nearly upon them. Jack got up and stood next to his fellow soldier, a lot of questions on his mind.

"So, how did it happen?"

"How did I go from a human being into that....thing?" the sergeant clarified, as he turned to look at the Overwatch team leader. Jack faced him, clearly wanting to know what had happened. The others, seated by the fire, also peered at the Canadian, their full and undivided attention on him. Even Zarya, who was still drifting in and out of consciousness, kept her focus on him.

"I suppose you all should know, considering the scrape you helped me get out of. It began during the last days of Overwatch. The details of what exactly happened are still a little fuzzy, but I will recall what I can," Mike sighed. He took a deep breath, then began his tale.

"During my time in Blackwatch, I had gotten to know quite a few of the individuals within the organization. We trained relentlessly, especially in those last days, but we didn't know for what. We just knew that we had to be ready, no matter what happened. I was approached by Gabriel Reyes and he told me of something he was working on. A new super soldier program."

"At first, I thought the guy was yanking my chain. Everyone knew that the old super soldier program was shut down decades before, due to the controversy. Gabe told me that he had found someone who could recreate the results that made both him and Jack. How it would give the members of Blackwatch, the edge that was needed to handle the various conflicts that we engaged in," Mike continued. "So, after he explained it all to me, naturally, I volunteered."

The team exchanged worried glances amongst each other, but the soldier went on with his story.

"It was not long after that, that I was introduced to Moira O'Deorain. She was the one who convinced me to be among the first test subjects. That I would gain abilities beyond what even the super soldier program was capable of. Little did I know, that the whole time, I was being lied to. I knew that there were risks involved, it comes with territory, but what happened next, was a nightmare."

"When the time came for me to undergo the procedure, I was strapped down to an operating table. 'For my own protection' she said. After injecting me with the serum that she had devised, I was then subjected to various kinds of.....'stimulation,'" Mike shuddered at the memories.

The various and inventive kinds of torture that were devised, left him with an inability to sleep properly at nights. It was obvious to the group that recalling this event was difficult for Mike, but they didn't prod him. Letting him continue at his own pace, they waited until he spoke again.

"Eventually, such treatment will start to break even the strongest of men, or women," he said after catching a pointed look from Zarya. "What happened next, is a blur. The only thing I remember, was my mind fading to blackness, while I heard a single constant tone. My best guess is, that was when I.....died."

"The next thing that I remember, was waking up in a ruined storage room, stumbling out of some sort of cryo tube. There was sparking wires, rubble and devastation everywhere. I walked on out, finding that headquarters was little more than a total ruin. While I was trying to find my way out, I ran into one of my team mates; Vincent McCready."

"One of the first things that I noticed about him, was how much bigger he had become, as he always was wiry, more so than most. I asked him if he knew a way out, but apparently, he had been placed there, in the depths of HQ, in case anyone had come looking for survivors. He told me that his orders were simple; kill anyone who came looking. With that, he attacked, intent on killing me," Michael continued on, saddened by the memory.

"As we fought, I asked him why he would turn on Overwatch, the people who had taken him in and given his life purpose and meaning. He taunted me, telling me that the days of heroes were over and that a new order over humanity would rise. The beginnings of it, he called them, Talon."

"Vince taunted me further, telling me that I wouldn't be around to see it. That I was supposed to remain in my cryo tube, like a good cadaver. How I was alive, he didn't know, but it was something he intended to remedy. The more we battled, the more I noticed how he had become more....feral and unpredictable. It almost was like he relished what he had become," Mike communicated, a tinge of anger in his voice.

"What happened next?" Tracer asked, her eyes wide as saucers, hanging off of the big man's every word. Smiling good naturedly, Michael went on.

"He managed to get the upper hand in the fight and knocked me into an exposed power relay. The shock of it left me dazed enough to where he pounced on me, driving me back into the relay, as he tried to electrocute me. The result of his actions was......unexpected. It was then and there, that I first changed."

"When I transformed fully that time, my inner...'beast', demanded vengeance for Vince's betrayal. As I went to fight him, I saw the look on his face. It was the look of a man who was staring death head on. The look of fear. I was.....not kind to him," Mike hung his head in shame, remembering how vicious he was, to a man he had once called a friend.

Zarya sat up with some difficulty and reached out, clasping his hand. Mike looked up into her eyes and didn't see fear, hatred or anger, but understanding. As though she knew the anguish and shame that coursed through him at that moment.

"He betrayed you. He betrayed all of you. Don't be ashamed of what you did. You did what you had to, what any sentient being, would have done," she said in her thickly accented voice. Mike's face softened, feeling a little better and he continued with his story.

"After I found my way out of the ruins, I made my way to the Watchpoint at Gibraltar. I had hoped to reunite with the rest of Overwatch and figure out what just happened. I was greeted by the sight of local government authorities closing up and sealing the base. I learned later about the Petras Act and all of its ramifications, if anyone was caught acting at the behest of Overwatch or its ideals."

"With Overwatch disbanded, I decided then to come back home, to Canada and hope to pick up where I had left off with my old life. Sadly, that wasn't the case. My old unit had replaced me and because I was affiliated with Overwatch, being a Blackwatch operative, I wasn't welcomed by any form of the military. I was blacklisted," the grizzled soldier carried on, his voice carrying a bitter tang to it.

"Things got worse for me after that. I was out one night, having a couple of drinks. After I'd had enough, I was on my way back to the motel I was staying at, when I saw a young woman being attacked. A group of thugs were dragging her into an alley and I knew what they were going to do to her. I wasn't going to let it happen, not if I could do something about it."

"I went after them with my sidearm, telling them to let her go. They were similarly armed, and shot at me, a couple of their bullets finding their mark. As I lay there, bleeding out, one of them, a cocky little slime, got in my face, telling me that there was no one who was going to save me, or the girl. That they would do what they wanted to us, and no one would lift a finger to help. It reminded me, of the very things that Vince had said to me during our fight. The anger and rage that coursed through me at that moment, was more than what I needed to keep fighting. So, I let the wolf out," Mike said. This time he wasn't ashamed of himself, but glad, his tone very clear on that intent.

"I killed four of them, wounded two of them quite badly. The girl was freed and safe, but she didn't look at me like I had just saved her life. The look she gave me, was like she was staring at her worst nightmare, come to life. She screamed at me, called me a monster and ran out of the alley."

"One of thugs must have gotten away or someone saw what happened, but either way, the police arrived. They took one look at me, drew their guns and opened fire. They couldn't hurt me with their weapons, but they didn't know that. I did the only thing that I could do. I ran."

"I managed to shake them, but I knew that it was only a matter of time before someone came looking for me. Someone would be smart enough to put things together and figure out my true identity. If I stayed in civilization, they'd find me, and either kill me, or cage me. I didn't like the idea of being a lab rat for the rest of my life, so I came to the one place where I could disappear. The only place where I could be free and live out my life in peace," Mike said, as he gestured to the landscape outside the window.

"It's been that way for at least seven years, just me and the wilderness, until today," he said, finishing his tale. He looked at the bottom of his coffee mug and grunted quietly. Going back to the still warm pot, he refilled his cup and took a sip, sighing heavily. Everyone else was quiet, still digesting the story that they had been told. Zarya broke the silence first, speaking her mind.

"Just because she called you a monster, does not mean that you are one. You saved her life that day, just as you have saved ours on this day. Your actions prove one thing about you; that you are a good man. To me, you are a good man," the pink haired Russian woman stated in a tone that brooked no argument.

Smiling lopsidedly, Sergeant Perun took a sip of coffee before responding, "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sergeant Zaryanova."

"Any idea as to what you'll do now?" Jack asked the Canadian man.

"No idea right now, but I know that I can't stay here. Talon knows that I'm here and I'm not letting Moira get her claws on me again," Mike groused.

"You could come back," Jack said, looking at mike sympathetically.

"Where?"

"To Overwatch."

Scoffing, Mike went back to the fire as he grumbled, "The Petras Act has kept us all disbanded and apart and last I heard, it was still international law."

"Screw the Petras Act! Have you seen the news lately? Heard of the devastation that has been wracking the world since we fell apart? The world needs us, even if it's too stubborn to admit it!" Jack iterated fiercely.

"You know, you sound just like Winston does," Mike said, a smirk on his face.

Yeah, well, even though he's a scientist, he still has a way of inspiring old war dogs like me. Have you seen his message? On the Overwatch emergency frequency?"

"No, I haven't," the big man said, shaking his head. "Out here, I'm pretty much cut off from the rest of the world."

"Well, as it turns out, many have answered the call, taking up the mantle again. Any that are still alive at least," Jack said darkly.

"What do you mean?" Mike asked sharply.

"Talon has been moving around the world, hunting down and killing any former members of Overwatch. They've had a great deal of success, as over sixty percent of everyone who was part of it, are now dead," the former commander sighed.

"How?"

"Gabriel Reyes. He was the one who betrayed us. Those who were killed as part of their hunt, their deaths can be laid at his feet. We nearly wound up being a part of his kill count," Jack went on. Seeing Michaels confusion, the white haired man clarified, "That man in black, was Gabe."

"What?!?!? How is that possible?" Sergeant Perun exclaimed.

"Moira. Somehow, whatever she was working on was aimed at making him into something more than what he was. By the looks of things, she succeeded. Now, the man we all knew as Gabriel Reyes is the killed calling himself Reaper," Jack finished.

Michael stood by the window, deep in thought, but also bristling with anger, that he was barely able to contain. The wolf wanted out, badly, but he reined it in, knowing that it was pointless to do so now. After he had calmed down, Mike thought about what he had just learned and came to a decision.

"You're right Jack. Screw the Petras Act. If these bastards are out there, killing our friends and destroying the lives of innocents, they need to be stopped. Consequences be damned, they need to be brought to justice," Mike said with steel conviction in his voice, as he turned to face everyone.

"One condition," he said and Jack waited for him to continue. "When the time comes to bring these bastards down, when we can strike at the very heart of Talon, I'm part of the team that does it. They turned me into a monster, it's past time that they faced what they created."

"Deal."

Jack reached out his hand in a gesture that Mike knew well. He then extended his own arm, clasping Jack's hand in his.

"Facta Non Verba," he said, reciting the JTF2 motto.

"Semper Fidelis."

And here is where it ends, for the moment. I do have a second and possibly third chapter in mind for closing this story. But that will have to wait until I get Chapter 6 of Project: Prometheus cranked out and edited. I put a lot of time and effort into creating this idea and I hope you guys out there, reading this, have enjoyed it.

One last thing that I will say is that the next chapter will have a good deal of sex in it, with one of the more neglected ladies of Overwatch! Who is it? Well, as I respect the canon of the universe, Lena, Angela and Ana are off the table for obvious reasons. Every other lady in the universe, is fair game, even the bad girls! >:D

Anyways, thank you for taking the time to read my work and I do hope that you've enjoyed it! I'm open to constructive criticism and will seriously consider any suggestions made about story flow, ideas or even directional tangents. Please feel free to rate and comment on my work down below. If you like what I write, don't be afraid to follow and share, though your views, ratings and comments are quite enough for me.

In the meantime, this is SwirlingJedi, signing off to grab a beer and some quality time with the wife! ;) You will attain whatever you most desire, as long as you believe in yourself. Cheers!