Chapter Text
The sky was grey, and the smell of wet grass filled my senses. The sound of the pitter-patter of the drizzling rain soothed my racing heart. The rock I sat on was uncomfortable, but in the moment all I could feel was sorrow. My (h/l) (h/c) hair was soaked from how long I had been sitting in the rain. Flashes of incapacitated bodies ran through my mind at speeds that I couldn’t comprehend. A whole town annihilated by Talon. From omnics to humans, they did not discriminate.
‘Why’
I was a lone survivor, not out of skill or luck but of cowardice. My (e/c) were bloodshot from all the crying I had done. ‘I could've helped, I could’ve done something. Could I have made a difference?’ I kept telling myself that I was at fault. No one came to help us, Overwatch disbanded, local authorities didn’t stand a chance. Nobody knew they were here. The town I had lived in my whole life was gone. My face felt cold, and my hands just hung limp by my sides. My head shot up. The sound of quick footsteps filled my ears. ‘They're back.’ My racing heart beat faster as I contemplated what to do next.
‘Do nothing, you deserve this’
I do, I do deserve this; don’t hide, accept your fate.
Another set of feet can be heard rushing closer. I could feel my legs slowly move to stand. My head hung low, my (h/c) hair covering my face. I walked closer to the white stone gate that had been concealing me.
“Brother, we are too late,” a stern voice spoke. One set of feet had come to a sudden stop, and the other had gradually gotten lighter until the steps seemed to disappear. I took a small step forward before feeling a cold line on my throat.
“Who are you?” A firm male voice spoke to you. I said nothing. I could hear the sound of a string pull in the distance. I tilted my head upward and saw a man in the distance, Long black hair, yellow-toned skin with a bow in hand. The pressure of the blade against my throat grew, and my fear grew. I did not know what to do or even what to say. In an instant, my body fell limp, and my vision went black.
++++++
Beep… Beep… Beep…
My (e/c) eyes squinted from the bright white light. ‘Where am I?’ I attempted to lift my hand to touch my forehead and was met with restraints. ‘What?’ I was overcome by a sense of panic. I looked around the room, and it seemed that I was in a hospital. The bright white lights and the generic paintings on the wall. Something seemed off. The technology was far more advanced than your average hospital, and the outside of the room seemed eerie. The walls looked like something out of an automotive shop. I stared intently at the window on the door. I closed my eyes to blink, and the jingle of the door handle caught my attention. My eyes opened wide to see a blonde woman with glasses and blue eyes.
“Hello there! My name is Dr. Zeigler. How are you feeling today?” I stared at the woman in shock. My mouth opened, but no words could come out. Now that I think of it, when was the last time I spoke? “No need to be afraid,” she muttered. “Take your time...” Her voice was calm with a strong accent that I couldn’t pinpoint.
“I- Where am I? Who are you? What is happening? Why am I here?...” Words shot out of my mouth so fast I didn’t even know what I was saying. An instinct took over in my state of fear. My voice was shaken, and I was unable to properly pronounce any word I spoke. Her face was unchanged, absorbing my feelings before speaking. “As stated before, I am Dr. Angela Zeigler. You are at an Overwatch base that I cannot disclose the location of. You are here because you were found in a critical state by two of our agents… Now I understand this is a lot to take in, but I must ask what you were doing there?”
‘No’
The images of dead children, friends, and neighbors started flooding my mind. “I- I-” I huffed in desperation. A warm liquid started to stream down my cheeks. Every time I closed my eyes, I would see them, lying there… They did not deserve this… Red… “NO!” I shouted. The woman made a swift movement away from me. I attempted to cover my face with my hands, but I felt the cold touch of the metal cuff around my right wrist. I stared at it intensely and pulled against it as hard as I could. I felt a warm hand on my forearm, signaling me to stop. I turned to face the woman; I couldn’t see her. Everything was a blur; I could see her silhouette but nothing more. “Breathe.” Her voice was barely audible. “I- I- It should've been me! Why did you let me live?!” I continued to rattle the cuff as hard as I could. Until I felt a sharp pain in my arm. I didn’t realize she had let me go. I could feel the pounding of my heart grow slower. “I am sorry… It was necessary. I will come to check on you. Rest.” She spoke, removing the needle with unknown liquid from my arm, before gently guiding me to lie down. She slowly walked towards the door, turning back as she gripped the handle. “You are safe…” Her words echoed in my mind as she walked through the door. ‘I am safe, how am I safe? I don’t want to be here.’ I turned to face my wrist that hung from the safety railing of the bed. Small droplets of blood had fallen on the wrinkled white cotton sheets. My thoughts became more distant as I observed my surroundings. The tickle of tears continued to make their way down my (s/c) cheeks. The pain in my chest made breathing difficult.
“How is she, Angela?” a voice spoke from beyond the door. I tilted my head up to see a glimpse of someone's grey sweater. The window was far too small to see anything else beyond that. “Her vitals are stable, and she sustained minimal injuries. I belie-” Her voice started to slowly grow more distant as each word passed. My eyes grew heavy, and my breathing slowed.
‘I am so tired…’
I opened my eyes once more to see the dim green blinking of a monitor. I moved my left hand to touch my right wrist that was restrained by the handcuff. Instead, I was met with a soft textured piece of cloth. I slowly sat up to examine my wrist further to find the handcuff gone. In its place was a piece of gauze wrapped around my wrist with oxidized bloodstains. I examined my surroundings to see I was still in the same room. The rumbling of my stomach broke the silence that consumed the four walls. I carefully slid to the edge of the bed, placing my bare feet on the freezing tile floor. A shiver went up my spine as I made small steps toward the door to the hallway. I placed my hands on the grey door for stability and peeked out the small window. The lights were dim, and there wasn't a soul in sight.
“This is my chance,” I muttered to myself. The click of the door echoed through the hall. I winced as the click of the handle was louder than I anticipated. Silence… The only thing that could be heard was air pushing out of the a/c vents. I wrapped my arms around my body that was shivering from the cool air. The hospital gown I wore was as thin as a sheet of paper and was uncomfortably scratching every point of contact it had with my skin. My tear-stained cheeks were flushed in a rosy sheen due to all the crying I had done earlier.
Pat…
I shifted my heels in the opposite direction. ‘What was that?’ My palms began to sweat profusely. I walked backwards in hope of not missing what had just made that sound. ‘Run.’ The sound of my feet hitting the ground grew as I began to run as fast as I could in my original direction. The feeling of being watched became known the faster I ran. There was no sound of footsteps, just the sense of a presence. I turned my head slightly to attempt to see who was following me and saw a light green glow.
CRASH
My body collided full force with a set of boxes I failed to see. Every part of my body was engulfed in pain. My (e/c) eyes winced from the pain. The sound of heels began to grow closer to me. “Are you alright?” A familiar voice spoke. I felt a gentle hand placed on my back; I shifted my gaze to meet hers. “I- I just want to go home… Please…” I turned my eyes back to the ground as I clenched my fists. Pressure began to build in my chest once more before the trickle of all too familiar liquid ran down my cheek. The sound of my racing heart was clouded by the pain. “I understand…” I could feel the breeze as she rose to her feet next to me. “Walk with me, will you?” She spoke as she took off her white coat, handing it to me. Cautiously, I placed my hand on her doctor’s coat. The soft cotton fabric felt almost like silk from how smooth it was. I threaded my arms through the holes and forcefully pushed myself off the ground. “Follow me,” she mumbled, hovering her arms around me as she guided me in the direction that she came from. My feet came to a sudden halt as I turned back to look at the hallway I ran out of to see nothing. No one… How strange… My gaze began to focus on the woman's physical features in more detail: short blonde hair cut into sharp layers, her skin was pale, and her eyes were a piercing blue. Losing track of time, I did not realize she had taken me outside. The moonlight illuminated the area around me. My grasp on the coat had come loose as I stared at the stars twinkling millions of miles away. The scent of fresh grass filled my nostrils as the wind danced around me. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” she exhaled, interrupting my thoughts. “Sometimes I stare at the moon when I miss home.” I shifted my feet to face her. “I understand your pain. I wish I could send you home, but there is much left to do before we can come to that.”
Empathy…
‘She heard me…’
I inhaled as much air as I could and responded: “What do you want from me?”