Queen's Princess

PART II: Chapter 8

I slowly blinked my eyes open to see the sun coming in from the one window in my house. Looking over my shoulder, expecting Odessa to be there, but she wasn't. I guess my mind was playing tricks on me last night. My body was tired and my mind was exhausted that I must have imagined Odessa was here, holding me tightly against her strong body like she used to do before she left. Slowly getting up, I sat on the edge of the bed and strecthed my arms and legs, yawning in the process. Turning towards where the photo sat, I picked it up and smiled at it, reliving the day of our celebration. Memories of our past came back, especially the time where we talked about loss.

"You're right, Dez. It definitely doesn't feel right with one less person at home."

Everything about this house reminded me of her. It was strong and determined to keep functioning no matter how many times it got struck with something or something broke, like the door. It held its own against the elements, such as the sand storms we occasionally get. The people in the Wastelands had it bad, but whenever we would get the storms here, I'd always get scared because of the noise it made back when I was living in the Wastelands. Hearing the clanging metal and seeing things flying towards me, it was scary, especially the first one I ever experienced. I hid in my room, since that was one of the only places that didn't have a window. My parents and my grandparents had to go into their room. And I was too afraid to leave the safety of my room to go and get comforted by my mother. 

When sand storms would come into Junkertown, they weren't as strong, but they did pack a punch to them. It rendered the entire town useless for the next few days as we got rid of the sand from the houses and from the things we create, such as our own vehicles. That was one thing Odessa and I were trying to work on here in Junkertown, but also in the Wastelands: better protection against the sand storms. We have yet to figure that out so for now, we fight through the storms we receive. 

I placed the photo back down onto the bedside table and stood up, getting changed and ready for the day. Opening the door, I looked out at Junkertown and took in a deep breath, smelling all the oil and fire that was happening. Hopefully the fire and the oil weren't near one another. That'd be another issue to worry about. I walked onto the small balcony, closing the door in the normal manner I do, lifting it up and pulling it closed, and headed down the stairs. When I reached the last balcony, I jumped off it and landed on the ground, heading to where I needed to be.

"Morning, Y/N," the people said as I got closer to the heart of the town.

"Mornin', everyone," I said and walked into the warehouse. 

I pushed the doors open and I was greeted by Meri, Geiger, Hammond, Roadhog, and Junkrat.

"G'day, gang," I said and closed the warehouse doors behind me.

"How's it goin', Y/N?" Meri asked.

"Same as usual," I said and walked over to my workbench. "What do we got for the day?"

"Same as usual. Repairs, orders and such."

"Anything new?" I asked.

"Uh, yeah," Meri said. "Junkrat, want to go show 'er?"

Junkrat came over and motioned me to follow him.

"What's the matter, Junkrat?"

"We got this early in the morning. Actually, it was delivered last night and we just found it when Roadhog was opening the warehouse."

I walked over to a table where a long and large box laid. It was already opened, but the box flaps were closed. Junkrat stood beside me as I pulled back the flaps and took a look at what was inside. My mouth hung open and eyes widened as what stared back at me was something I never wanted to see. Lifting it out of the box, it was Carnage, Odessa's axe. There was blood on the blade, not to mention the entire blade was chipped.

"There was no note, but we assumed ya knew what to do with it," Junkrat said.

"T-Thanks," I said, holding onto it tightly. "I-I'll take care of Odessa's axe and I'll probably take it home with me."

"It deserves to be there with ya."

I walked over to my work station and placed Carnage onto the table. It stared back at me, haunting me with the questions of what happened and where Odessa is right now. I wanted to know where she was and what state she was in. I shouldn't have let her go by herself.

"You were summoned by someone named Winston?"

"Yes. There is an initiative that I need to be part of."

"What does it do?"

"It saves the world from threats. You know, that sort of thing."

"And you're going to walk in there without knowing what's at stake for you?"

"I have a duty to my people. And now I have a duty to the world. I will come back, Y/N. That is a promise on my life."

"If you're going, then how come the others aren't?"

"They are going, but they're going to send us back if we're not needed anymore. Y/N?"

"Yes, Dez?"

"Take care of Junkertown for me."

I guess since the others are back, like Hammond, Junkrat, and Roadhog, they weren't needed anymore. But they still needed Odessa. Wiping the tears from my eyes, I grabbed a rag and ran it under hot water. Placing it on the blade of the axe, I washed away the blood from the metal before removing the blade of the axe, replacing it. Once it was finished, I sharpened it up and leaned it against the wall where my work bench was up against. I didn't want to bring it home, since it would serve as a reminder that she's not here with me. But it does deserve to be in the place where everything meant the world to her: our home.