She was alive, but only just. Bleeding out profusely, Mercy leapt to work instantly, focusing on stemming the blood flow. The crimson pool on the floor was widening by the second, and with every drip, drip, drip of blood that fell, Reaper sank deeper and deeper into the darkness.
The shadowed monster had refused to let her go, forcing Mercy to do her work with Sienna in his arms. He never looked away, silent and terrifying as black smoke billowed from his frame. Kneeling on the floor, his eyes traced her paling face, piercing through his cracked mask.
As Soldier 76 watched on, his gaze may have been hidden by the visor, but his clenched hands shook as he stood upright. It was like a knife had been driven through his heart, but all he could do was stare until Tracer grabbed at his sleeve, terror strewn across her face, bringing him back to life.
Instantly back in the moment, he span round and barked out commands, expertly managing his team until no one was left standing still.
The rest of the Overwatch team were to give them some space, instead focusing on finding out how Widowmaker had gotten in, and tracking her down before she could get too far. Jack Morrison refused to let fear corrupt his team. This was a major incident, and the facility and all its inhabitants were in full lock-down mode.
'If two Talon members can cause this much damage, then their entire corporation will destroy us... Find Widowmaker, and bring her in.' The soldier commanded, his voice unwavering.
Truly distanced from his emotions, this was why they chose him to be their leader. He would get them through this, and he would bring Sienna safely out to the other side - no matter what it took.
//
'Ughhh... Someone.. Someone turn the light off.' Sienna sleepily moaned, shifting her arm up above her eyes. It was blindingly bright, white and sterile.
How long has she been sleeping?
Keeping her eyes closed, Sienna lifted her head, but instantly dropped it again as pain burst across her chest like a gunshot wound.
Lightly touching her neck with her other hand, the bandages were piled high.
Unable to open her eyes in the light after being in the dark so long, Sienna's mind whirred, panicked at the feeling of the cotton under her fingertips.
Oh god. That was it, wasnt it? The gunshot. That happened. I'm not...
Silently remembering, recalling the events, she breathed deeply. Taking her time, Sienna opened her eyes, squinting at her surroundings.
A hospital room. A hospital bed. She'd never been in one of them before, but she'd visited Mercy on occasion.
Gritting her teeth at the pain, Sienna used her good arm to prop herself up, straining against her screaming muscles. It took so much effort that she breathed heavily, barely noticing as the door opened and a blonde woman walked in.
Abruptly stopping, Mercy seemed to be in a flurry as she flew to Sienna's side, one hand pressed lightly on her back, the other supporting her arm.
Looking up at her, Sienna couldn't make out anything that she was saying.
Something was ringing loudly in her ears, making her dizzy, making her feel--
-Throwing herself to the side, she was just quick enough to avoid being sick all over the bed, instead hitting the conveniently placed bin. The ringing subsided as Angela lifted her back up and softly lying her down again.
'It hurts, Mercy.'
Her blue eyes were stunning, worried - was she really worried for her? - but calm and collected. Sienna couldn't focus on anything, let alone how perfectly suited for her job Mercy was.
'You'll be okay, Sienna. Reyes and Jack made sure of that' She joked with a wink, quickly concealing her emotions and looking down at her clipboard notes.
Forcing her voice to come out strongly, Sienna spoke up. It was time she heard some harsh truth.
'Mercy.... How long have I been here for?'
For a moment, Mercy said nothing, but she wasn't done with her questions.
'Where is Reaper? What happened to Widowmaker? Is everyone else okay? How did-'
With a slightly nervous laugh, Mercy cut her off.
'Hey, calm down. You need rest, this isn't important for now.' The medic's started, but seemed to realise Sienna wouldn't let it all go so easily.
Sighing, she continued. 'It's not so simple, you know.' Looking out of the window behind the bed, Mercy's brow furrowed.
'I've been treating you for a week. I put you into a coma on the first day so you wouldn't die straight away, and I hadn't planned to take you out until you were fully healed.'
The angelic blonde let out a long breath and looked away, almost as if ashamed of herself.
'We were also going to wait until we had... Figured some things out.'
Instantly suspicious, Sienna's guard went up.
'What does that mean, then?' She snapped unwittingly, desperate to hear an explanation.
'Sienna. This isn't about you. Jack trusts you explicitly, and if he does then... Well, then so do I. But we don't know what Reaper could have done to you while he had you captive.'
Instantly ready to defend herself, Sienna tried to speak but was instantly cut off by a stern glance from Mercy.
She can be scary when she wants to be... Floated through Sienna's mind as she backed down instantly.
'We know what happened to Widowmaker at Talon. We all want to believe that's not what has happened to you, but how else would both Widowmaker and Reaper have been able to get in here undetected?'
Mercy began to get agitated, striding next to her bed, her stress clearly evident.
'Only a couple weeks ago Reaper ripped your side open like a hot knife through butter. That's how easy it is for him, Sienna... We trusted you when you first got here, but not everyone thinks that was such a good idea any more. But as for Reaper, it's obvious that he... He cares for you.'
There was a pause, and Sienna's head was spinning, her mind whirring at a million miles an hour.
'Whatever happened back there... We think he tried to save you. He wasn't there to hurt us. What that means, we don't know yet.'
Shaking her head lightly, Mercy halted her pacing and looked down into Sienna's eyes, the medic's clear blue irises piercing through her defences.
Eyes welling up, Sienna blinked away her emotions.
'He's a good person, Mercy.'
For a moment, Sienna kept her eyes locked to hers, willing her to believe; willing her to understand.
Suddenly dropping eye contact, Angela stepped professionally towards her, fixing the drip and bandages Sienna had moved, before turning away and walking towards to door quietly.
One hand outstretched and her mouth hung open, Sienna could only see the doctor's coat sway as she left, shaking her head. But as the door opened and she began to leave, Sienna could have sworn she heard a tiny sigh from the blonde angel....
... followed by: 'I know. I know he is.'
Letting her head fall back into the pillow, all Sienna could feel was the stinging burn of her shoulder, and the ghost sensations of large, warm arms around her, holding her closer and closer.
She didn't want to relive that moment, but somehow she did.
Will I ever be as close to him as I was then?
The thought was the last thing that passed through her brain before she let sleep take her again, feeling comfort in the darkness that she once feared so long, long ago.
// Author's note at the end of the next chapter! Enjoy x