Mercy’s eyes widened before she quickly turned away. She could hear Junior’s screams as the Omnic carved and lobotomized her adopted family. She was done. She couldn’t look anymore. She couldn’t take this anymore. She needed to get away. She quickly reattached her wings, pulling the plug to the computer without any hesitation. Small gasps of air escaped her as she bolted out the door.
“Breathe,” she commanded herself. “Just breathe...”
Her home abandoned and ruined! Her friends salvaged and controlled! She couldn’t take this! She should have come sooner! She forgot about her roots! This was all Overwatch’s fault! This was her fault! All her fault!
She began hearing a strange noise, like a jet engine coming closer and closer to her. She turned and saw Trey, in full Crusader Armor, charging her current position. She quickly jumped up and used her wings to hold her above Trey’s head. Thankfully, the right wing held out as the Crusader went past Mercy and rammed into the room next to her.
Mercy pushed with her feet and flew in the opposite direction. It wasn’t long before her wing fluttered dead yet again. She came crashing down on the tile as Trey regained his own composure and started stomping toward her. She quickly got on her feet and ran as fast as she could toward the stairs and elevator.
The thundering sound shook the ground as Trey vaulted after her. Mercy slammed into the elevator doors and dropped her staff to the ground. She used every muscle in her arms to pry the doors open before she met a cruel end. An agonizing moan loomed over her. She quickly ducked as a giant metal hand careened into one of the doors, bending it open.
The other hand followed suit, but mercy dived into the hole created by Trey to avoid the next blow, while simultaneously reaching out for her Caduceus staff on the floor. As she tried to bring the staff to her chest, she felt an opposing force keeping it in place. Trey’s foot had stomped on the back of the staff—where all of her surgical supplies were located. She pulled on her end to try and make it move to no avail.
Trey gave a shrill laugh as he then punched through the other elevator door, throwing Mercy back against the wall. Her head slammed back uncomfortably against the shaft. She quickly recovered her bearings and dodged another blow.
Trey stepped inside the claustrophobic box and pounced on the top of the elevator transport below them, forgetting the fact that her staff still lay on the ground. Mercy noticed, and made her move.
Mercy went fully prone and hovered a centimeter off the ground as she rotated to the side of Trey and grabbed her staff behind him. She then brought her feet to the adjacent wall and pushed with all the force she could muster. She flew off another wall as she activated the blue beam on her staff; she was directly in front of the second-floor elevator doors. One more push, and she may be able to break through the doors.
Her left foot left the wall as she activated her wings and moved to her exit. The right wing sparked, tickling Mercy’s neck as it refused to cooperate. Instead of soaring, Mercy merely lunged at a poor angle; her upper body slammed the elevator doors, but her lower half rammed the wall below. Mercy tried to reach out with her hand and grab a ledge, but the edge slipped from her. She was now falling toward her enemy.
In her last effort, she threw up her staff and activated it. The three prongs opened up at the tip of the staff, indicating it was being used. She tossed the staff to the corner of the room; sure enough, one of the prongs grappled a metal beam and lodged tight, catching the angel before she fell within reach of the Crusader.
Her breath and heartbeat continued its rapid pace as the doors to the second-floor mysteriously opened. Some natural light from a lightning strike poured into the shaft behind Mercy. She turned and had her spirits lifted as she saw an old, familiar face.
But that hope quickly dissipated as she remembered the truth.
On the second floor was none other than Junior, with his black eyes and malformed face. He reached down and ripped the staff away from its lodging and slowly brought the staff to him, pulling Mercy with him. As Mercy ascended with the staff, she whispered aloud, “I’m sorry, my friends...”
Once within range, Mercy did a pull-up on the staff and brought her feet above her head, kicking Junior in the stomach. He lurched back, pushing Mercy to a place where she could climb onto the second floor ledge safely. Mercy released her staff to Junior and combat rolled into the room. She quickly pulled out her pistol, pointing it at her old friend—without hesitation.
Junior batted the gun away with the staff, sending it through the window of one of the nearby rooms. Both combatants ignored it as Junior still assaulted Mercy with her staff relentlessly. She twisted and dodged a few jabs, only to get hit by a few more.
Eventually, Junior attempted to lunge forward with the staff parallel to the floor. “Please work,” Mercy prayed as she jumped and activated her wings to rotate around the staff via an aileron roll and kicked Junior in the head. His body flew into the room behind him. The wall and window frame buckled under his weight as he fell into the room. Mercy finished her rotation just as her wing gave out. She still fell on the floor, but she now had her staff back in hand.
Junior shot back up—Mercy's Caduceus Pistol in his hands—and fired a few shots. Mercy covered her face with her arms and dived into the room, tackling Junior in the process. Junior took a few more shots and used the butt of the pistol to smack Mercy in the jaw. She faltered on her footing a bit and fell on one knee, eyes swirling.
Junior forcibly grabbed her hair and yanked it back toward himself. Her wings flailed in his face distractingly. He then took the pistol and pointed it at Mercy’s forehead. Her wings fluttered as she tried to escape.
Suddenly, her right wing—the damaged one—sparked right next to Junior’s face. The sparks from the wing traveled to the pained look on Junior’s features. He dropped the pistol and grabbed his face as he rolled on the ground. Mercy, swerved around and grabbed the now-free pistol. She pointed it back at Junior, breathing heavily.
Junior’s screams swiftly died down replaced by agonizing groans. Eventually, those groans transitioned into words.
“Angela...?” Junior fumbled.
Mercy, though still pointing the gun cautiously, knelt down beside her dear friend. “I’m here, Junior. Tell me what happened.” Her voice was gentle, yet strong.
“I...I...Marc--…” Junior looked up at Mercy. His eyes were no longer black, but their typical blue.
Mercy holstered her pistol and picked up her staff. She turned on the healing beam and watched as all the scrapes and bruises—caused mostly by her—to dissipate. Junior’s expression even turned from pain to peace.
“We need to leave, Junior.” Mercy commanded firmly. “I can’t help you here. Not with...”
The ground shook.
“Oh no.” Mercy grabbed Junior by the shoulder and carried him out of the room. She walked briskly.
“Omnics...at...entrance...” Junior moaned. Talking still seemed difficult for him.
Mercy grunted in acknowledgement and rerouted her course. They were currently on the second floor, and the second floor had a connecting bridge to the neighboring parking garage. They could use that—and maybe even borrow a car if there were any left.
As Mercy turned a corner, she came face to face with the Crusader yet again, who limped ever closer.
“Angela...Run...” Junior coarsely spoke.
With that, he pushed Mercy aside and leapt toward his little brother. He gave a sharp kick to the side of the Crusader—to the leg Marcion stabbed earlier. The Crusader howled and fell on all fours to the ground. Junior then went behind him and attempted to remove Trey’s helmet.
Mercy didn’t run. She stood there a bit, mostly in shock. Eventually, she snapped out of it and held up her staff. She activated the blue beam on Junior as he made his attacks. The extra strength helped Junior make progress with the helmet, but not before Trey reached behind and grabbed his brother. In one fell motion, he tossed his brother over his head.
Junior flew through the air and hit a nearby wall. Mercy remained where she was and switched to the healing beam on Junior, helping him get up quicker. In the meantime, Trey snapped his helmet back upon his head and charged his brother.
The duo fought savagely. Mercy watched as she supported Junior. Everything was happening so fast; she needed to get to the bottom of this. The fact Junior was back to his normal self told her that whatever was controlling him was inside his body. It also told her that whatever was possessing him and his brother could be beaten.
Junior landed another punch on Trey’s bad leg, causing the Crusader’s sure footing to falter. Unfortunately, Trey had learned and had anticipated the next attack. As Junior positioned to strike the limp leg yet again, Trey shifted and caught Junior’s leg. Trey swung his arm around and tossed Junior through some double doors. Junior slammed the doors and continued his trajectory; the strength of the crusader was fully shown.
“Junior!” Mercy shouted. The Crusader turned to look at her. Fear surrounded Mercy—not just for her sake. Trey reached down and tried to grab her, but she was too quick. She rolled out of the way and charged the broken doors Junior went through.
The doors were the entrance to the parking garage bridge. Junior was on the far end of the bridge, not moving. Even from afar, Mercy could tell that his legs were broken from the sheer force. He wouldn't be able to walk out of here!
The storm was raging now outside. The rain poured out and obscured everything around. Mercy ran forward and grabbed her brother and moved toward the parking garage. Meanwhile, Trey saw the perfect opportunity to strike. He wound up and activated the jet engine on his back. The Crusader charged at his foes. The straight shot provided by the bridge meant they had very little room to dodge his assault.
Mercy looked behind her and moved as fast as she could carrying Junior and her staff. The Crusader rushed forward incessantly. Mercy bashed the doors open and immediately dived to the left; Trey charged right by, narrowly missing his targets. He went and slammed on a concrete pillar, turning it to mere pebbles. He growled and looked around for his targets.
The parking garage was only lit by the occasional lightning strikes outside. Trey wandered around cautiously watching for any sudden movement. Between the severe thunderstorm and Trey’s heavy footsteps, it was difficult for the Crusader to listen for his prey.
Suddenly, he heard a sound behind him. He gave a quick laugh and turned around to pounce. Lightning struck once again and illuminated the inside of the garage. A hovering car was zooming toward the Crusader—with Mercy as the driver.
When she was near her attacker, she opened the door and jumped out. The car hit Trey with full force. He did his best to catch it with his hands, but his feet did not hold any traction. He traveled in the direction of the car, which eventually led him to the edge of the parking garage. The car continued to push, and Trey was helpless against it. The concrete waist-high wall bordering the garage cracked and shattered as both the car and Trey crashed through it. The two heavy objects veered off the side and fell a couple stories.
Mercy used her healing beam on herself as she slowly got back up off the ground. She then gave a sigh of relief and ran toward another car, where she had put Junior in the back seat.
Trey was still alive. She knew the kind of force and punishment a Crusader could take; she had to fix up Reinhardt, the Overwatch Crusader, many times. All the car would do was, hopefully, give her and Junior enough time to ride out of here unharmed.
She started the car and rode out to the street. The rain battered the windshield of the vehicle. She prayed the Omnic forces waiting at the entrance of the hospital didn’t see her leave. She wanted to get away unharmed.
She had a lot to think about...
“Breathe,” she commanded herself. “Just breathe...”
Her home abandoned and ruined! Her friends salvaged and controlled! She couldn’t take this! She should have come sooner! She forgot about her roots! This was all Overwatch’s fault! This was her fault! All her fault!
She began hearing a strange noise, like a jet engine coming closer and closer to her. She turned and saw Trey, in full Crusader Armor, charging her current position. She quickly jumped up and used her wings to hold her above Trey’s head. Thankfully, the right wing held out as the Crusader went past Mercy and rammed into the room next to her.
Mercy pushed with her feet and flew in the opposite direction. It wasn’t long before her wing fluttered dead yet again. She came crashing down on the tile as Trey regained his own composure and started stomping toward her. She quickly got on her feet and ran as fast as she could toward the stairs and elevator.
The thundering sound shook the ground as Trey vaulted after her. Mercy slammed into the elevator doors and dropped her staff to the ground. She used every muscle in her arms to pry the doors open before she met a cruel end. An agonizing moan loomed over her. She quickly ducked as a giant metal hand careened into one of the doors, bending it open.
The other hand followed suit, but mercy dived into the hole created by Trey to avoid the next blow, while simultaneously reaching out for her Caduceus staff on the floor. As she tried to bring the staff to her chest, she felt an opposing force keeping it in place. Trey’s foot had stomped on the back of the staff—where all of her surgical supplies were located. She pulled on her end to try and make it move to no avail.
Trey gave a shrill laugh as he then punched through the other elevator door, throwing Mercy back against the wall. Her head slammed back uncomfortably against the shaft. She quickly recovered her bearings and dodged another blow.
Trey stepped inside the claustrophobic box and pounced on the top of the elevator transport below them, forgetting the fact that her staff still lay on the ground. Mercy noticed, and made her move.
Mercy went fully prone and hovered a centimeter off the ground as she rotated to the side of Trey and grabbed her staff behind him. She then brought her feet to the adjacent wall and pushed with all the force she could muster. She flew off another wall as she activated the blue beam on her staff; she was directly in front of the second-floor elevator doors. One more push, and she may be able to break through the doors.
Her left foot left the wall as she activated her wings and moved to her exit. The right wing sparked, tickling Mercy’s neck as it refused to cooperate. Instead of soaring, Mercy merely lunged at a poor angle; her upper body slammed the elevator doors, but her lower half rammed the wall below. Mercy tried to reach out with her hand and grab a ledge, but the edge slipped from her. She was now falling toward her enemy.
In her last effort, she threw up her staff and activated it. The three prongs opened up at the tip of the staff, indicating it was being used. She tossed the staff to the corner of the room; sure enough, one of the prongs grappled a metal beam and lodged tight, catching the angel before she fell within reach of the Crusader.
Her breath and heartbeat continued its rapid pace as the doors to the second-floor mysteriously opened. Some natural light from a lightning strike poured into the shaft behind Mercy. She turned and had her spirits lifted as she saw an old, familiar face.
But that hope quickly dissipated as she remembered the truth.
On the second floor was none other than Junior, with his black eyes and malformed face. He reached down and ripped the staff away from its lodging and slowly brought the staff to him, pulling Mercy with him. As Mercy ascended with the staff, she whispered aloud, “I’m sorry, my friends...”
Once within range, Mercy did a pull-up on the staff and brought her feet above her head, kicking Junior in the stomach. He lurched back, pushing Mercy to a place where she could climb onto the second floor ledge safely. Mercy released her staff to Junior and combat rolled into the room. She quickly pulled out her pistol, pointing it at her old friend—without hesitation.
Junior batted the gun away with the staff, sending it through the window of one of the nearby rooms. Both combatants ignored it as Junior still assaulted Mercy with her staff relentlessly. She twisted and dodged a few jabs, only to get hit by a few more.
Eventually, Junior attempted to lunge forward with the staff parallel to the floor. “Please work,” Mercy prayed as she jumped and activated her wings to rotate around the staff via an aileron roll and kicked Junior in the head. His body flew into the room behind him. The wall and window frame buckled under his weight as he fell into the room. Mercy finished her rotation just as her wing gave out. She still fell on the floor, but she now had her staff back in hand.
Junior shot back up—Mercy's Caduceus Pistol in his hands—and fired a few shots. Mercy covered her face with her arms and dived into the room, tackling Junior in the process. Junior took a few more shots and used the butt of the pistol to smack Mercy in the jaw. She faltered on her footing a bit and fell on one knee, eyes swirling.
Junior forcibly grabbed her hair and yanked it back toward himself. Her wings flailed in his face distractingly. He then took the pistol and pointed it at Mercy’s forehead. Her wings fluttered as she tried to escape.
Suddenly, her right wing—the damaged one—sparked right next to Junior’s face. The sparks from the wing traveled to the pained look on Junior’s features. He dropped the pistol and grabbed his face as he rolled on the ground. Mercy, swerved around and grabbed the now-free pistol. She pointed it back at Junior, breathing heavily.
Junior’s screams swiftly died down replaced by agonizing groans. Eventually, those groans transitioned into words.
“Angela...?” Junior fumbled.
Mercy, though still pointing the gun cautiously, knelt down beside her dear friend. “I’m here, Junior. Tell me what happened.” Her voice was gentle, yet strong.
“I...I...Marc--…” Junior looked up at Mercy. His eyes were no longer black, but their typical blue.
Mercy holstered her pistol and picked up her staff. She turned on the healing beam and watched as all the scrapes and bruises—caused mostly by her—to dissipate. Junior’s expression even turned from pain to peace.
“We need to leave, Junior.” Mercy commanded firmly. “I can’t help you here. Not with...”
The ground shook.
“Oh no.” Mercy grabbed Junior by the shoulder and carried him out of the room. She walked briskly.
“Omnics...at...entrance...” Junior moaned. Talking still seemed difficult for him.
Mercy grunted in acknowledgement and rerouted her course. They were currently on the second floor, and the second floor had a connecting bridge to the neighboring parking garage. They could use that—and maybe even borrow a car if there were any left.
As Mercy turned a corner, she came face to face with the Crusader yet again, who limped ever closer.
“Angela...Run...” Junior coarsely spoke.
With that, he pushed Mercy aside and leapt toward his little brother. He gave a sharp kick to the side of the Crusader—to the leg Marcion stabbed earlier. The Crusader howled and fell on all fours to the ground. Junior then went behind him and attempted to remove Trey’s helmet.
Mercy didn’t run. She stood there a bit, mostly in shock. Eventually, she snapped out of it and held up her staff. She activated the blue beam on Junior as he made his attacks. The extra strength helped Junior make progress with the helmet, but not before Trey reached behind and grabbed his brother. In one fell motion, he tossed his brother over his head.
Junior flew through the air and hit a nearby wall. Mercy remained where she was and switched to the healing beam on Junior, helping him get up quicker. In the meantime, Trey snapped his helmet back upon his head and charged his brother.
The duo fought savagely. Mercy watched as she supported Junior. Everything was happening so fast; she needed to get to the bottom of this. The fact Junior was back to his normal self told her that whatever was controlling him was inside his body. It also told her that whatever was possessing him and his brother could be beaten.
Junior landed another punch on Trey’s bad leg, causing the Crusader’s sure footing to falter. Unfortunately, Trey had learned and had anticipated the next attack. As Junior positioned to strike the limp leg yet again, Trey shifted and caught Junior’s leg. Trey swung his arm around and tossed Junior through some double doors. Junior slammed the doors and continued his trajectory; the strength of the crusader was fully shown.
“Junior!” Mercy shouted. The Crusader turned to look at her. Fear surrounded Mercy—not just for her sake. Trey reached down and tried to grab her, but she was too quick. She rolled out of the way and charged the broken doors Junior went through.
The doors were the entrance to the parking garage bridge. Junior was on the far end of the bridge, not moving. Even from afar, Mercy could tell that his legs were broken from the sheer force. He wouldn't be able to walk out of here!
The storm was raging now outside. The rain poured out and obscured everything around. Mercy ran forward and grabbed her brother and moved toward the parking garage. Meanwhile, Trey saw the perfect opportunity to strike. He wound up and activated the jet engine on his back. The Crusader charged at his foes. The straight shot provided by the bridge meant they had very little room to dodge his assault.
Mercy looked behind her and moved as fast as she could carrying Junior and her staff. The Crusader rushed forward incessantly. Mercy bashed the doors open and immediately dived to the left; Trey charged right by, narrowly missing his targets. He went and slammed on a concrete pillar, turning it to mere pebbles. He growled and looked around for his targets.
The parking garage was only lit by the occasional lightning strikes outside. Trey wandered around cautiously watching for any sudden movement. Between the severe thunderstorm and Trey’s heavy footsteps, it was difficult for the Crusader to listen for his prey.
Suddenly, he heard a sound behind him. He gave a quick laugh and turned around to pounce. Lightning struck once again and illuminated the inside of the garage. A hovering car was zooming toward the Crusader—with Mercy as the driver.
When she was near her attacker, she opened the door and jumped out. The car hit Trey with full force. He did his best to catch it with his hands, but his feet did not hold any traction. He traveled in the direction of the car, which eventually led him to the edge of the parking garage. The car continued to push, and Trey was helpless against it. The concrete waist-high wall bordering the garage cracked and shattered as both the car and Trey crashed through it. The two heavy objects veered off the side and fell a couple stories.
Mercy used her healing beam on herself as she slowly got back up off the ground. She then gave a sigh of relief and ran toward another car, where she had put Junior in the back seat.
Trey was still alive. She knew the kind of force and punishment a Crusader could take; she had to fix up Reinhardt, the Overwatch Crusader, many times. All the car would do was, hopefully, give her and Junior enough time to ride out of here unharmed.
She started the car and rode out to the street. The rain battered the windshield of the vehicle. She prayed the Omnic forces waiting at the entrance of the hospital didn’t see her leave. She wanted to get away unharmed.
She had a lot to think about...