Save Him One More Time: Phase 3

Chapter 4- Zenyatta

"I saw who the Reaper is."
"Who?"
"Gabriel Reyes."

Angela startled and stared at Ana for a quivering moment, before quickly dropping her head and putting a hand to her mouth, trying desperately to hide the sobs she couldn't keep back. Ana put a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

It was a long time before either woman spoke, but when Angela had stopped crying, Ana sighed.
"I suppose you can't stay here very long. If anyone saw you on the way here he'll know where you are." She crossed her arms and leaned back. "Do you know anyone who could possibly help you, maybe overseas, or at least a few thousand miles from here?" Angela sniffed, wiping her eyes and shaking her head. "No. I don't know where any of them is anymore. I have no way to contact anyone." She sighed. "Ana, is there anyone you've kept in touch with who could help, maybe get me somewhere?"
Ana thought for a second, seeming to dispute an idea with herself, and then she shrugged.
"Zenyatta. Might be worth a shot. He knows me, he might be able to help. You don't have a problem with peaceful omnics, do you, Angela?" Angela furrowed her eyebrows.
"I don't suppose so. Does he have some kind of omnic network that brings information to him?" Ana shook her head, laughing a little.
"No, Angela. Zenyatta is an omnic. He teaches the ways of peace. Although the last I heard, his close friend had been assassinated. He may have changed as far as his opinion of people goes but he might have some students who could help."
Angela nodded slowly.
"I suppose we could try him. Where is he?" Ana shrugged.
"I'll get in touch with him and let you know in the morning."
Angela stood up.
"Do you want me to leave you alone?" Ana waved a dismissive hand.
"Only if you want to, dear. I wouldn't mind if you stayed for a while, if you don't mind me doing other things. But I understand if you would rather get Zarya to show you your room and get settled in for the night." Angela nodded and pulled the old sniper into a hug.
"I'll leave you to your work for now, but I'll be back after a while, Ana."
"Be careful, Angela. I would advise you not to leave the building."
Angela nodded, closing the door softly behind her.

Zarya was waiting just outside the door.
Angela jumped. "Zarya!" The Russian chuckled.
"Don't worry, I was not listening. In fact, I only just got here." She led the way down the hall, motioning for Angela to follow.
"Come with me. I show you your room." Angela followed.

Her room was nearly at the top of the building, and Zarya explained,
"Is harder to be found up here. There are many rooms and someone trying to find you will have to go through nearly all of the others first. You will have time to escape."
Angela gave her a look. Zarya's eyes twinkled.
"Alright, maybe I did listen a bit. But is obvious you are hiding from someone. No one comes here for vacation." She winked and put a finger to her lips. "But do not worry. No one will ever hear a word from me." She closed the door and Angela heard her footsteps going down the stairs.

The room was a decent size, with a large armoire in one corner. The bookshelf, Angela discovered, led to a tiny secret room behind it. The painting of some famous person on the opposite wall, when she touched it, dropped a panel with places for an old-fashioned gun and a couple of knives. Angela accidentally kicked something under the bed that felt like a body, and when she looked, found a roll of bloodstained blankets. She shivered. Someone had been killed in this room, who knows how long ago. Their weapons in the painting had proven useless against whatever had come for them and they had died in their bed. She pulled the bed skirt back into place gently and stood, unable to help a sudden feeling of dread. She sat gingerly on the edge of the bed, thinking about the events of the past month.
Her sudden departure from the clinic, her long trip to Russia, her week and a half of wandering around trying to find Aleksandra, getting lost despite the incredible helpfulness of the Russian people. And, of course, the shocking revelation that Ana was alive.
But that Gabe was alive was harder to believe. She'd seen him die. She'd held his dead body in her own arms as Jack tore her away, unable to accept that fact.
She'd never really moved on. The nightmares weren't as bad as they'd been for the first year but she still woke up crying most nights. She still couldn't go a full day without remembering something from their time at Overwatch.
And now he was hunting her.
The Reaper.
She'd read the reports. He could wipe out almost an entire town in a single night. They said he traveled like a cloud. A black cloud that brought death.
A wave of loneliness and fear hit her seemingly out of nowhere and she hurried to wipe away the tears that wouldn't stop coming. Memories flooded her mind, memories of her first date, the last date, the last conversation she'd had with him. The explosion. When she'd found his body. Jack tearing her away. And waking up in a shuttle to Winston explaining what had happened to a terrified driver.
And then just today. Gabriel was still alive and he was a cold-blooded killer hunting her for who knew what reason. Probably for Moira's revenge on Angela for telling about her theft of Angela's designs.
She sat up suddenly, wiping her eyes hurriedly as a knock sounded on her door.
"Who is it?" she asked, still wiping her face.
"Is me, Zarya. Ana wants to see you again. She says she's gotten in touch with another old friend."
Angela wiped her eyes one last time and opened the door.
"Can you please take me there again? I don't quite remember the way exactly."
"Of course, little angel."

The instant Angela shut the door behind her, Ana sprang up from her seat and put her hands on Angela's shoulders, ignoring the medic's tearstained face.
"So I've spoken with Zenyatta and he says he's got the perfect student to help us. He says he'll bring him here and if we don't like him, and he thinks we'll just love him, if we don't like him Zen will accompany us himself." Ana paused for breath and Angela gently tried to walk her to a seat.
"Ana, you're very excited, maybe you should-"
"No, no, Angela, I need to stand, it will help. But, Angela, Zenyatta told me the name of his student he's bringing, and you could never guess." She stopped, waiting expectantly.
"Uhh..." Angela wracked her mind for anyone she had known who was even remotely sympathetic to omnics. Her mind drew a blank.
"I don't know."
"Have a heart, Angela, you know him very well, and dare I say you saved his life when no one else could, or would, for that matter."
She still had nothing.
"Ana, it's been over seven years since I saw anyone from Overwatch. I don't know if I'd recognise anyone at this point, except maybe Winston."
Ana frowned, disappointed.
"Well then you can just wait, I guess. You'll know him when you see him, don't worry. You two were always close."
"Oh, come on, Ana. Don't keep me in the dark like this. You know how long it's been. I've healed thousands of people that no one else would. Or could. The only other person who developed my technology was Moira and I don't think she's ever used it to heal. Please, tell me, Ana." The sniper shook her head.
"No. They'll be here in a few hours anyway. I suggest you get some rest, Angela. You've had a long day and you'll need to reserve your strength." Angela shook her head in dissent but left Ana to herself anyway, managing to find her room after getting lost on the third floor, unable to find the stairs going up. She sat down on her bed, and laid back, staring at the ceiling and thinking over who she could possibly know that had ever been at all sympathetic to omnics, and that she had saved. No one at Overwatch, she knew. Nor Blackwatch. If it had been someone she'd saved in the field, she rarely asked names except to confirm that she was going to work on the correct person. There had been literal thousands of them and she didn't remember most of them.
She awoke with a start when someone knocked loudly on the door.
"Angela, wake up." Ana sounded annoyed.
Angela opened the door, still half asleep.
"What do you need, Ana?"
Ana gently slapped her face.
"Wake up. Zenyatta's here. And he's brought his student."
"Oh." Angela rubbed her eyes and nodded.
"Lead the way, Ana. I still don't know where anything is around here."

When they walked into Ana's room, a floating omnic turned to face them from the window he'd been staring out of.
"Doctor Ziegler," he said, extending a hand.
"I've heard so much about you from my student I feel I already know you. Many times he has told me how you saved him from certain death." He started slightly. "But where are my manners? I am Zenyatta. If I know anything about our mutual friend Ana, she's already told you quite a bit about me. And of course you know my student who I am sending to escort you to safety." He motioned to someone Angela hadn't noticed before standing by the doorway, head down in thought. They looked up, and immediately came up to Angela and wrapped their arms around her.
"Angela, it's been too long," said a metallic voice she could never forget. She reciprocated his gesture excitedly.
"Genji! Oh, it has been too long!" She pulled away. "Let me look at you." She looked him up and down. The tubes, wires and red lights were gone, and in their place he wore a helmet, light silver armor and had green lights and sword.
"You've changed so much!" He took off the faceplate of the helmet.
"It's still me in here, though," he reassured her. "But I have come to terms with what you did to me. I have found peace."
"Oh, that's wonderful, Genji!"
He smiled. "It is indeed, Angela."
"All right, if you two are done reminiscing we've got an escape to plan." Ana poked Genji and then Angela, motioning for them to sit down.

(My apologies for this chapter being so late. This week has been very busy work wise, and it doesn't look like it's going to lighten up very soon, but I'm hoping to get a better schedule in the near future.
As always, a huge thank you to all who read this story up to this point! I hope you've enjoyed it this far and will continue to enjoy it as I keep writing it!)