Overwatch: Jinxed

Chapter 11: Brief

Isabell was sprinting before she even realized she'd moved from the wooden shack.

She didn't know why. On instinct, she knew alarms never meant good. And an alarm here, in this place shielded from the rest of the world... 

Isabell had known that Winston was working on a shield prototype. But she hadn't realized he'd succeeded - or created something on this scale. If the alarm was piercing at this end of the compound, she was pretty sure it was deafening in the center.

Genji streaked past so quickly that all Isabell saw was a green flash, headed in the same direction she was. Straight for the building. If Genji, master of harmony and king of calm, was sprinting full speed - and even using up energy Dashing - then Isabell's suspicions were correct.

As Isabell ran in through the automatic doors, she realized she didn't know where to go - but Lucio burst in behind her and grabbed her arm, charging down the hallway. "This way."

Isabell didn't resist.

Carving around a couple of corners, past the cafeteria (Isabell's mouth watered despite the urgency) and past the lab - where it was obvious Mei had left in a great hurry - until they reached the dead center of the building and dashed in through glass doors.

Inside, it was a massive octagonal room. In the center there was a similarly-shaped holotable and up one end there was a holovid covering an entire wall. There were nine chairs set out around it, silver and gleaming, and no windows.

Six of the chairs were taken - by McCree, Mei, Mercy, Genji and Tracer. Isabell quickly took the one beside Tracer and Lucio sat down next to McCree, leaving only one chair left. The room smelt like shoe polish and steel, and the alarm was shrieking so loud that Isabell couldn't have heard anything if she'd wanted to.

Winston was standing in front of the holotable, his face grave. Once Reinhardt charged in, swearing in German, Winston hit a big red button - fitting, Isabell supposed - on the holotable's console and the alarm finally quieted, leaving Isabell's ears ringing for a moment.

"Glad you could make it, love," Tracer grinned, nudging Isabell. "Here's where the real action happens."

Isabell noticed the logo on the holovid and grinned. "Hey Athena. Remember me?"

"No," Athena said, and Isabell could have sworn she heard a grumble behind her words. Isabell's grin grew wider. Not even Athena could find any trace of her in her own database.

"Quiet," Winston said in his low voice. The chattering around the group stopped abruptly. Tracer wiggled a finger in her ear, probably trying to clear the ringing in it.

Winston tapped on the holotable's surface and it lit up, rising into the formation of some large mountains and a small figure which appeared to be a plane flying across it. A dotted line of its trajectory was slowly being eaten up as it traveled.

"This plane is unmarked. Nothing telling us where its from." Winston's voice was grave. "It comes from a laboratory in deep Atlantic waters. I can't pinpoint where. But it's carrying the sort of power levels that could literally implode a continent."

Tracer whistled and Isabell blinked. "That's impossible though - the law of--"

"I know, Isabell," Winston said, and she could see a glimmer of scientific understanding flash through his eyes. "But yet here it is. From what little information I could gather, it seems that they're carrying an incredibly powerful experiment - and it looks like we're not the only ones with our eye on it."

The holotable turned red as the plane swerved, heading south-west instead of north. A symbol rose off the plane and displayed above the mountains.

"Talon," Lucio breathed.

"This plane model doesn't have an autopilot," Winston explained, "Which will make our job easier. Someone will need to pilot it. So even if they brought Reaper, Sombra and Widowmaker, one of them will be occupied."

"When the shie ze hits the fan," Reinhardt asked Winston, "Only two of them will be able to engage."

"Yes," Winston nodded. "Lena, you'll need to go. Genji, you too - mobility is key. The plane is too small for someone too clunky, which rules out you and Reinhardt, McCree."

Reinhardt swore again, and McCree just nodded solemnly.

"You're going to need healing, seeing as there won't be many medical supplies up there, so Angela, you'll go too. The wings are an added bonus."

"We'll need someone else," Tracer told him matter-of-factly. "I barely survived last time I went up against two of them. We'll need double their numbers if we're going to take this mission by storm."

Winston looked around, his gaze lingering on Mei. His words nearly made Isabell flinch as he said, "Isabell, you go."

"I'm sorry?!" Isabell stared, unsure if she'd heard him correctly. The ringing in her ears--

"I want you to go as well," Winston told her. "You're small, so mobility won't be a problem in a tight space. You've proven you can work well with Lena. And since she can get herself to safety easily and Genji is very heavy with his dual nature, he will fall faster if you end up dumped from the plane. Fast enough for Angela to land him safely and still have time to land you as well."

The thought of the sickening fall from the plane made Isabell's stomach lurch. But her heart was going six hundred beats a minute. A mission. She supposed she should have seen it coming, but she'd barely been here three days and yet already--

"Um..." Mei adjusted her glasses. "I went up to your bench while you were exploring, Isabell, and I... well, I... finished your material synthesis, because it was so interesting, and then I saw you plans, and I, well, I couldn't help myself..."

She pulled something from behind her, and Isabell stared.

It was all black leather (or looked like it), with thick black stitching lines cut across it. Exactly the way she had imagined it, with a silver zip that cut jaggedly across the front of the jacket. Blue rings set into the leather, dead as a doornail right now. It had a massive, jagged collar that was turned down at the moment and leggings that looked made out of some kind of mat black fishscale. The boots were jagged as well, none of the stitching lines matching up, and with blue heels and soles as well. The belt had a buckle, and the buckle was a winking skull with chains beneath its jaw. Nunchucks.

The insignia of Jinx.

"...You did it," Isabell breathed. "How did you--"

"You were just missing the--"

"Okay, sciency stuff aside," Tracer stood up. "We have places to be. We'll skydive in from the jet, yeah?"

"Yes," Winston said gruffly. "I'll fill you in on more while you're flying." There was a sparkle in his eye as he looked directly at Isabell. She could have sworn she saw him raise an eyebrow as he spoke.

"Dismissed."