" YUANFEN " genji shimada.

iii | 2063

IT WAS NO SECRET that Fareeha Amari wanted to become an Overwatch agent. From the moment Dahlia met her when they were just children, it was all she ever talked about. As they grew older, however, Fareeha's desire to train as an agent became a common topic of argument between her and her mother. Captain Amari was known to be tough on the recruits that she trained- she claimed that "pushing recruits now would only make things easier for them later on"- but anyone that overheard the mother yelling at her daughter and vice versa was immediately put on edge.

Dahlia usually went out of her way to make sure she wasn't dragged into the arguments. It happened once, when she was sixteen and Fareeha had just turned eighteen. Having just become an adult, Fareeha was determined to finally convince her mother to allow her to train to become an agent. When Ana had objected, the daughter asked Dahlia what she thought about the entire situation. Dahlia, also having the desire to become a field agent when she was old enough, had asked Captain Amari why she was so against her daughter becoming an agent.

The look that Ana Amari shot her was enough to silence her for the rest of the week, and since then Dahlia made sure to never again be dragged into another mother-daughter argument.

Nevertheless, she always heard about the arguments after the fact. Dahlia was the first person Fareeha sought out afterwards, and it was no different this time around. Dahlia was sitting in the rec room, lazily watching whatever sitcom was being broadcasted on the holovision, when Fareeha found her. The young Amari was seething, her tan skin tinted pink and her fists clenched at her sides. She groaned loudly as she plopped down beside Dahlia, then buried her face in her hands.

"You know," Dahlia began and reached out to pat her friend's shoulder comfortingly. "After all these years, you would think that you would've learned to stop arguing with your mother. Where do you think you get your stubbornness from?"

"She should have no control over me," Fareeha grumbled, voice muffled by her hands. "I am an adult."

"And yet she is still a Captain," Dahlia pointed out. "You say you want freedom from her, but if you became an agent, you'd never get it."

"You think I shouldn't become an agent?" Fareeha looked up at her, eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. It was obvious that she was surprised, for the pair often discussed their desires to become Overwatch agents with one another.

"No," Dahlia said with a shake of her head. "Have you tried asking Commander Morrison?"

Fareeha paused for a moment. Her face lit up, then it was immediately replaced with the same melancholy expression as she sighed. "He would never let me either. He respects my mother too much."

Dahlia said nothing, though she nodded in understanding. Ana Amari was not only a Captain, but a founding member of Overwatch and currently second in command. If anyone was allowed to boss Jack Morrison around, it was her.

"I do have a backup plan though," Fareeha said, catching Dahlia's attention once more. "The Egyptian Army is always looking for recruits. There's talk of a new division that they're calling Helix."

Dahlia pursed her lips. Fareeha was her best friend, and the thought of her leaving the base where the pair were raised together was not a pleasant one. Still, Fareeha was twenty years old, and if she wasn't given the opportunity to train as an agent, it was unfair to expect her to stay. "That'll be great for you," Dahlia eventually said, smiling slightly. "You'll have freedom and the opportunity to protect the world. It's exactly what you want."

She expected Fareeha to be happy with the idea, though the young Amari wore a frown on her features, seeming almost hesitant. "You can do it too, you know."

"I'm not an Egyptian citizen," Dahlia pointed out.

Fareeha rolled her eyes. "I mean, for your own country."

"You mean the same country that is led by prejudiced omnics that pushed my father and I out of our tribe?" Dahlia said with a bitter laugh. "No way. They're only letting omnics into the military. Overwatch is my only option."

"Good luck convincing your dad," Fareeha scoffed. "He's like my mom on steroids when it comes to stubborness."

Dahlia shrugged. "He'll have to understand. He only wants what's best for me, and that's Overwatch."