Breakdown (@fallensparrow)

[mlgpro]

[There was a singular, chilling, horribly recent memory that ran through Hana's mind as he frantically pushed forward the control schema of the mech that protected him from the Serengeti's unfamiliar climate. It was a voice, deliberate and definite, nagging, constantly, nagging in his head. It was the quarter on the train track, a perfect derailment, the absolute terror of tons of steel coming undone from the outside. It was the taste of actual and legitimate fear as it welled up from the inside of him. From the inside of his mech.]

The enemies of Talon will be eliminated.

[The ambush that occurred 0500 hours ago while on a Procedural mission to wipe out a small, but remote and well disguised outfit of the terrorist organization turned out to be a bust. Procedural, he remembers, Winston- who had called it Procedural just 0800 hours ago - was nowhere in sight. It left an ape shaped hole in his nerves.

The first wave was an EMP pulse. Hana had been trained to deal with those in the past. His baby, tons upon tons of steel and reinforced Korean national pride, was equipped for the chance an Omnic uprising would disable electronics and motors.

Within the mass confusion, there was a piercing noise from the speakers located outside of the foreman's door in the warehouse, in what sounded both beautiful in its French accent, and terrifyingly prophetic. This was orchestrated, an entire event planned to attack Overwatch. The old man commanded the order to evacuate- but it was too late. There was the sound of explosion, and a roof collapsing. Everyone separates, and the last thing Hana remembers is finding it to safety, out in the open unknown.

Wave 2 was sleeping gas.

He came to in the middle of nowhere. Well, technically, he was in the middle of Tanzania, which might as well have been the middle of nowhere. He checked his comm link, again. Busted. No sound through his headphones outside of the calm whir of machinery behind him. That beautiful sound. Elegant, perfected, engineered and deliberate. It was all the life he needed for now.]

First things first.

[He sighed, looking down at the panel just below his face. How many hours had he sunk to learn the controls? It was about the only thing that felt right about this mission.

That was, until something physically struck the exterior of his mech. It was electrifying, white hot pain. It felt like being split in two. The dashboard lit up like a river reflecting city stop lights, flashing 위험 over and over. He felt himself close to losing consciousness again, quickly trying his foot to hit the emergency release. It wasn't until he was outside did he realize there was something attached to the back of it. And suddenly it was quiet.]

What in the... hell?

Comments

[mlgpro]

[It took a second for him to get the joke, but when it dawned on him, he punched Genji's arm jokingly and fake-glared at him. To which he immediately retracted his hand and shook it in a slight amount of pain. S-shibal, he cursed to himself. Right. Who needed a six pack and a warehouse of muscles with that physique. In good humor, he played it off and fired back.]

Eish.... Yeah, just keep the dragon in your pants tonight, then. I don't need it poking its head out while I'm catching beauty Z's.

[He drew a Z in the air as if Genji needed an illustration.

Hana, the epitome of maturity, making sex jokes nearly after losing his life for the second time that day.]

Although, maybe it won't be too bad. At least I'll have a night light.

[There was a crookedness to his smile, one that asked to be challenged. Hana was great at making those. Rivals back in the video game industry always found it infuriating. He dug into the pocket of his suit, pulling out a stick of gum, careful to unwrap it and not leave behind evidence on the floor. Popping it in, he started walking, using the radio signal in his ear like it were a radar for Talon proximity. It was lucky that Genji managed to swipe this thing.

Food and provisions would be scarce. He also wondered if it got much colder at night, despite the suit being perfect for insulation in either hot or frigid weather (another one of those ideas thought up by middle aged engineers in the war room of an government office). Pop, he blew a bubble. What he wouldn't give to be back at the base.]

Seems like they're searching for the other members too. One of them's been calling for a unit... I'm guessing that was the patrol we took out. The good news is, they don't seem to have a location on us.

[fallensparrow]

[The joke was so unexpected that Genji couldn't help barking out a laugh at it. It wasn't that humor was a surprise from Hana, but given their situation, he'd been quieter than his usual self. Genji hadn't been sure how fast he would bounce back, but in hindsight he really shouldn't have been so surprised. Regardless of his age Hana was a soldier, and a celebrity on top of it. He had to be quick on his feet. Genji could admire that, though he kept the sentiment to himself for the moment.]

I shall have to check if 'night light' is within my armor settings. I'm sure I can find something.

[He followed after as Hana started walking, allowing the younger to take the lead. The access he had to Talon's communications meant it only made sense. But Genji is certain to keep his attention on their surroundings and a hand on the hilt of his shorter blade; who knew what could leap out at them from the brush. He wanted to be prepared to strike when needed. Hana was a soldier, a capable one, but Genji still felt no small measure of responsibility for his well-being.]

Good. [A mutter more than anything else, his visor turned toward the jungle around them before moving to the canopy above. Keeping track of how long it was before they'd be forced to climb up into the branches and settle in for the night.] We need to put as much distance between us and the unit as we can. We don't want to risk being around if they get tracked down.

[He'd have to trust that the mech being inoperable to Hana meant that they would have more than enough warning if Talon came across it, whether through the stolen commm or from the means Talon would be forced to employ to move the mech. Even better if they managed to overlook it completely.]

You are certain none of the other Overwatch agents have been found?

[mlgpro]

[He wasn't sure how many times he's even heard Genji laugh before, but it was worth mentally noting to try to get him to do it more often. It felt a little more comfortable when the tension wasn't running so incredibly high, like a live voltage wire cut loose from the utility pole. It wasn't that Hana wasn't prepared to face the worst; on the contrary, it was because everything could potentially become the worst that he wanted to bring a little peace to himself. Making the other laugh was a welcome side effect.

Still, wandering out as it turns dusk has its definite dangers. There's always the threat of animals, encounters with hostiles, and of course, the occasional snag against a weirdly hung branch that Hana gets the arm of his suit snagged by as he walks. He's not surprised, but like any piece of expensive clothing, he wants to take care of it and make sure it's always in pristine shape. Heaving a sigh, he complains about it mentally as his attention drifts from his companion's words to the tiny rupture. He continues on. Such a brave little soldier.]

Right. And if they have backup, it won't be as easy as Mr. Lite Bright swinging through and chopping them all down this time. Not that it's a bad thing. You were kinda amazing back there.

[Hana hears something in the earpiece.]

They're talking again.

[His heart stands still for a moment]

Looks like they've realized a squad's went MIA. No, two squads. Two? Genji, that means...

[Maybe it was a little premature to be happy, but it was a definite feeling of relief. If anything, he wanted to be back at the base. And he had to figure out something to do with his mech. He couldn't decide what he wanted more, but bother were equally important to him at that moment. He was sure eventually he'd hear about the busted contraption over the comm link at some point, and then it was only a matter of time.]

[fallensparrow]

[Under the pretense of keeping up levity, of helping to relieve some of the tension that's come down on their shoulders, Genji makes a show out of preening at the comment. He goes far enough to flick the tassel of his helmet back off his shoulder, much like a woman might flip her hair. It makes him feel like a teenager again, showing off for the attractive men and women who flocked to him.]

I do my best to impress.

[But Genji is quick to silence as Hana speaks again, stilling as he waits for the news from the comms. The news of another squad down from the one they'd taken out is a welcome thing, though Genji keeps himself from cheering too much from the idea. As good as it is to have some sign that the others are out there, relatively close by, they still have the jungle and Talon to contest with. They're all still in danger until they can find a way to come together.]

Did they give a location for the second squad?

[Of course, whatever agent, or agents, had taken them out would be quick to move on, just as he and Hana are now. But it's a start. It's something more than idly wandering and hoping. But to keep things realistic, he has to add a word of caution on.]

We won't be able to pursue it tonight, not unless we can get our bearings and the location is close to ours. But it will give us somewhere to start tomorrow.

[mlgpro]

[Hana thought it would be rather impractical to start looking right away, even as the impulsivity of it struck him like divine inspiration. If anything, he wanted to at least know who it was that took the squad down. Probably Soldier. That guy could face an entire squadron of enemies just by himself and make it out with barely a bruise. Or maybe it was Tracer? She could topple cities in the blink of an eye. The thought made him strangely homesick. Not homesick like he usually felt on base when he distracted himself with various video games or light trolling, but the type that gnaws away deeply, and lightly at the same time. Like we was starting to understand what this rag tag team of camraderie really meant to him. He was glad that Genji was making light of the situation, because it was turning into one of those situations where Hana would lose confidence. And he hated himself when he did that.]

Nah, no location. I imagine they're gonna get a little more quiet on this thing now that they know the line's been compromised.

[He leans over and flicks the string of soft material like it was actually Genji's hair.]

Well... if I were a certain cowboy I'd probably say something like "Well, darlin'. You're looking mighty pretty in this here moonlight."

[That has to be the worst impression of McCree ever, considering how thick his Korean accent is to begin with. His voice is always a higher pitch when he speaks English, so it's rough trying to instill a deeper tonality when he makes his impression.

He starts moving again, and time passes by as it would any other moment when danger was abound everywhere and there was little to hope in sight: insanely fast. He has no idea what looks like a good place to stop, but a dense area of trees is probably as good as anything else.]

Let's make camp? Come on, you can tell me stories from your youth.

[He gives a thumbs up, smiling in his attemptingly cheery self]

[fallensparrow]

[When Hana calls for camp, Genji nods in agreement to the assessment, taking a moment to observe the trees around them, make sure they can find one where there's little risk of their weight breaking a branch in the night for a severely rude awakening. Once he spots a fitting tree, one with thick, sturdy branches and some good leaf cover to hide themselves in, he kneels down to allow Hana to climb onto his back so Genji, in turn, can climb into the tree. Even with more weight to account for, it's a simple task to carry them both into the shelter of the leaves above and settle them down on a thick branch, up against the gnarled trunk of the tree.

And, well, since Hana wants stories...]

I used to do this often, [Genji says, almost seemingly apropos of nothing, until he continues with,] climbing trees. There were plenty both in our family's courtyard and around the castle. I would use the cover to dodge my brother, or whatever staff or elder was most irritated with me that day.

[There was a time when Genji couldn't bring himself to speak of his family or youth without feeling rage or grief choking him; he's thankful that Hana had never had to witness that side of him. Genji hadn't been kind at all in his pain. Now there's nothing more than nostalgic amusement in his voice as he speaks of the memories.]

I would excuse it as 'an exercise of my training' whenever I was caught. Predictably, very few thought it as clever as I did.

[Honestly, thinking back on it now, Genji can easily see why Hana had grown on him so quickly. The young man reminds him much of how he used to be: carefree, always ready with a comment or jab up his sleeve, confident in the face of the world. Thankfully Hana is a better man than Genji used to be at his age.]