The Hunter | Overwatch

A Light in the Dark

2045, 31 years before present time, Overwatch Headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, 9:37 P.M.

Overwatch was formed at the behest of the UN to combat the Omnic Uprising. The Anubis God Program had taken control, sending commands to Omnics worldwide with one singular, horrifying directive: eradicate humankind. Nations scrambled, throwing everything they had at the relentless Omnic onslaught. But nothing worked. Cities fell. Entire populations were lost. With no other options, the world called on its last hope—a strike team of the most elite soldiers, armed with the best technology humanity had to offer. This team was Overwatch.

Three months had passed since its formation, and already the weight of the world felt like an unbearable burden. But for Jack Morrison, it was just another day in the office. He stood on the balcony of the Overwatch Headquarters, staring at the night sky, the flicker of distant stars reminding him of the battles they had fought—and won. His body ached with exhaustion, but his mind was sharper than ever. The war wasn't just on the battlefield; it was inside him, eating away at his resolve bit by bit.

Yet, this was his life. He was a soldier. Carrying the burden of war came with the territory. But even soldiers broke, eventually.

As his thoughts drifted, a sudden flash lit up the sky, blindingly bright, striking the ground somewhere deep in the forest beyond the compound. Jack shielded his eyes, blinking away the spots as the light vanished, leaving nothing but the soft whisper of the wind and the eerie quiet of the night.

Jack frowned, narrowing his eyes at the dark forest. That wasn't normal. “What... was that?” he muttered.

---

Shaunʼs head throbbed, a dull, numbing ache spreading from his temples down to his spine. He stumbled forward, disoriented. The world around him was muffled, like he was trapped inside a bubble. The soft rustle of leaves, the distant chirp of night animals—it was all muted, as if nature itself was holding its breath.

Lena...

The thought hit him like a fist to the gut. His breath caught in his throat, his chest heaving with ragged, uneven pants. His mind raced back to the days they'd spent together: her laugh, that goofy grin she wore after outdrinking him at the pub, the way she always looked out for him, like the big sister she was supposed to be. Gone. Just like that. Lena was gone. She's gone. And I couldnʼt do anything.

Tears blurred his vision as he clutched his head, feeling the cold sweat trailing down his face. He had watched it happen, helpless, trapped in that infernal machine, while Lena... disappeared. She was supposed to be the unstoppable one, the unbreakable force that held their family together. But now...

Now sheʼs just... gone.

His hands trembled, fists clenched so tight his knuckles were white. He could feel something—a pressure, surging through his veins like boiling water, fighting to be released. “Stop it... stop!” he muttered under his breath, gripping his hair as if he were ripping it out. Then came a crack—a deafening roar. Splinters shot out like shrapnel, the tree reduced to nothing but fragments. Shaun snapped his head up just in time to see a tree explode into jagged shards of wood, the bark splintering and scattering across the forest floor. His eyes widened, his breath hitching in his chest.

Steam rose from his hands, thin tendrils curling up into the cold night air.

He stared, heart racing, mind barely able to process what had just happened. Did I... do that?

“No... no, no, no. This can't be happening,” he muttered, stumbling backward until his back collided with the trunk of another tree. His hands shook uncontrollably, the remnants of steam still wafting from his skin.