The Hunter | Overwatch

Chapter 79: No Way Out

The war room buzzed with quiet urgency, the glow of holographic displays casting long shadows over the gathered Overwatch operatives. The mission briefing had just concluded, and despite the familiar ritual of suiting up and making final preparations, the tension in the air was unmistakable.

Shaun leaned against a console at the edge of the room, arms crossed, his sharp caramel eyes fixed on the mission map projected in front of him. The assignment was straightforward: infiltrate a Null Sector manufacturing facility, disable their production lines, and extract any valuable intel before the Omnics could put their latest war machines into action.

It should have been a routine operation. But something about it gnawed at him.

A few minutes ago, he had decrypted a strange transmission intercepted from an unknown source-an ominous message buried within layers of encrypted data. The message had been fragmented, as if theyʼre, or rather he, was sending a threat.

“We’ll meet again soon, Shaun. Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll recognize me... once we’re face to face.”

That was all he could recover before the rest of the data became irretrievable noise. He had tried rerunning the decryption, looking for patterns, but nothing made sense. It had been written in a way that suggested familiarity-like someone on the inside had sent it.

Now, watching his comrades gear up for what should have been a standard mission, Shaun couldn't shake the weight pressing on his chest.

At the center of the room, Cassidy adjusted the brim of his hat, his usual relaxed demeanor subdued by the gravity of the situation. "Alright, everyone, we have our teams in place." His voice carried the authority of a seasoned gunslinger, steady but firm. "The Infiltration Team will be Mei, Bastion, Genji, and D.Va. You'll infiltrate the Null Sector manufacturing plant and disable their production lines. We need those Omnics neutralized and their weaponry offline before it reaches the battlefield."

Mei gave a small nod, her hands tightening around the straps of her backpack. Genji, ever silent, merely inclined his head, while D.Va checked the systems on her mech one last time. Bastion, whirring softly, stood at the ready.

"Extraction Team will be Pharah, Brigitte, and Sojourn," Winston continued, pushing his glasses up. "Once the Infiltration Team has completed their objectives, you'll be ready for pickup. If anything goes wrong, you are their backup."

Shaun shifted slightly, feeling an odd pull in his gut. His role in this mission wasn't on the ground. He wasn't a frontline fighter-his place was behind the screens, decrypting data, monitoring comms, and ensuring the mission ran smoothly from a tactical standpoint.

Still, the feeling wouldn't leave him.

Cassidy's voice cut through his thoughts again. "Everyone, we're countin' on you."

Shaun inhaled, pushing his concerns down. There wasn't time to dwell on his paranoia. He wasn't about to call off an entire operation over a single cryptic message, especially one that could have been a ruse.

"Move out," Winston commanded.

The teams dispersed with practiced efficiency, their boots echoing against the metal flooring as they made their way to the launch bay. Mei and Genji moved swiftly toward the entry point of the facility, D.Va's mech following closely behind with a steady mechanical whirr. Bastion trailed after them, Ganymede chirping quietly from its perch.

Pharah and Brigitte exchanged a brief nod before following Sojourn toward the extraction vehicle.

Shaun's gaze lingered on them as they disappeared through the doors. He clenched his jaw, a single thought gnawing at him.