i think tf2 could really use a "behind you" command

Matters of Time and Fate (10)

“What’s the cat’s name, anyway?” Scout wanted to know, fiddling with his seatbelt as he watched Olivia smooth her hands all over the toy cat. “Did ya give it one?”

Olivia shrugged, looking back out the window. “I dunno yet…” she looked back down at the cat, smiling again, the situation at the store mostly forgotten for now.

Engineer pulled into the dirt driveway, heading up the garage and parking. He let out a sigh as soon as they were parked, and he undid his seatbelt. “Finally, home again. I’m real hungry, anyone want lunch?”

“Yeah, sure!” Olivia piped up, quickly getting rid of her seatbelt and opening the door.

Sniper offered to help her out of the car, but she assured him she could do it herself. Everything seemed fine as the four headed inside, but the moment they set foot in the threshold, Miss Pauling approached.

“Thank god, you’re back,” she spoke hastily, ushering the mercenaries as well as Olivia all the way inside and shutting the door. “Guys, it’s time for a meeting,”

“Meeting?” Engineer raised an eyebrow. “No one said anything about meetings!”

“Well, it’s important,” Miss Pauling then turned to Olivia, gesturing to the stairs. “Hey, how about you go upstairs? This is a grown-up meeting, okay?”

Olivia frowned, sticking her chin out defiantly. “I go to grown-up meetings! Daddy takes me to them, and when the guys don’t listen to him, he—!”

Before she could finish her thought, the Administrator appeared in the doorway. “Olivia, go upstairs this instant,” she spoke quietly, but she was firm enough to silence Olivia.

Olivia toyed around with the cat in her hands, staring at her feet. Sniper nudged her gently. “Best listen to her,” he whispered.

“Fine,” Olivia decided after a moment, turning on her heel and heading up the stairs.

Once she was up in her attic room, she set the cat down on the shelf above her bed, making sure the spot on the shelf was properly dusted off. She then noticed the heating grate by the bed, and as she leaned close to it, she could vaguely make out the sounds of voices from downstairs.

Olivia climbed down onto the floor, kneeling beside the grate and putting her ear against it to listen. She wanted to know what this meeting was all about – she didn’t have a reason why, she just enjoyed knowing things.

Down in the study, Miss Pauling had all the mercenaries sit down while the Administrator stood at the front of the room, an unreadable expression in her eyes. This whole situation was unusual: whenever the mercenaries had meetings, the Administrator usually kept a great deal of distance from them, or sometimes she was not even there at all. Today, though, she was within just a few feet of them, and somehow this felt very strange to the men.

As soon as everyone was seated, Helen cleared her throat and began speaking. “Hello, everyone,” she greeted. “As you may know, this house is where we will be staying until Saxton Hale arranges to have us moved back to a regular base. Initially, I was not planning to put you to use, but something has happened, and now your skills are needed,”

Spy blew on his cigarette, observing Helen’s face when she talked. “And what has happened?”

The Administrator and Miss Pauling exchanged a look from across the room, before the Administrator went on. “The bit of Australium which was launched into space and lost is not lost after all,”

A gasp rippled through the mercenaries as this information sunk in. Sniper tensed, and from beside him, Demoman noticed and put a gentle hand on his arm.

“So,” Medic spoke up from where he was seated. “What does this mean, exactly? You said it was in space, how was it found again?”

The Administrator took a breath. “Well – the spaceship carrying it wound up colliding with a satellite station. However, this wasn’t just any satellite station,”

As the mercenaries listened carefully, Helen went on to explain, “That station belonged to Security Republic, a lucrative security camera chain. They also have their own television channel, which I assume is what the station is for.”

“Wait just a minute,” Engineer spoke up, his brow furrowing. “Security Republic? Weren’t they the company that helped with Mann Co.’s original security camera installation way back in the day?”

“That they are,” the Administrator confirmed with a nod. “Our partnership with them ended many years ago after a new CEO took over. All you need to know about this new CEO is that his name is Phoenix Sage, and his history with Mann Co. is…” she grimaced a bit. “Unpleasant, to say the least. He is now in possession of the Australium, but he is holding it for ransom. The only way we can get it from him is by paying whatever amount of money he decides it’s worth. Or, we could just take it by force, although this is one situation where I would like to avoid doing so,”

“You want us to pay money?” Heavy frowned. “Not kill men, but pay money?”

“Not quite,” Helen corrected him. “Saxton Hale has already agreed to pay the ransom. Now, under normal circumstances, I might not even need to include any of you in this, but considering this is Phoenix Sage we’re talking about, we will definitely need some of you as backup for Hale…”

Scout snorted. “Why’s that? Is this Sage guy real strong or something? I bet any of us could take ‘em!”

Helen just rolled her eyes. “Please, its far more complicated than that. The man is a master manipulator – not only is he physically capable of combat, he is mentally capable as well,” she cleared her throat again. “Now, I’ve made a list of who should go with Hale to face Sage, and…”

“Oi, Administrator?” Sniper interrupted, raising his hand to get her attention. “Ma’am—sorry to interrupt, but…I-I was wondering, did they say anything about…someone being on the ship? Like, was there anyone on the ship with the Australium?”

The room became very still. Miss Pauling sighed from where she was standing at the back of the room. “Oh, Sniper…”

“They did not mention anyone,” the Administrator replied after a moment. “But I’m sending you over there with Hale, so you can ask when you get there,” she pulled out a list from a binder and continued. “Going with him are Engineer, Soldier and Heavy. The rest of you are permitted to stay here, but be on alert just in case something goes wrong and Hale needs more backup, agreed?”

The mercenaries agreed, and they began to go their separate ways. Those who had been called gathered their supplies, knowing they had to be ready for anything.

“Yo, Snipes?” Scout approached Sniper as the older man was loading a bag with containers of extra bullets. “You doin’ okay?”

Sniper was quiet as he checked his supplies again. “Yeah, I’ll be okay. It’s just…” he sighed, turning around to look at Scout. “Did the others tell you about what happened, when that spaceship full of Australium got launched?”

When Scout shook his head, Sniper clarified, “Well, it just so happened my…” he paused, composing himself, taking a breath. “It just so happened my biological mum was on that ship,”

Scout’s eyes widened. “Dude, for real? Damn…so, like, is she alive or…?”

Demoman stepped in. “Laddie, its best if you don’t upset him more,” he turned back to Sniper, patting his shoulder. “No matter what happens, we’re gonna be here for you, lad. I promise,”

Sniper nodded, slinging his bag over his shoulder. “Thank you,” he murmured, squeezing Tavish’s hand a little before turning and heading for the door.

As Sniper, Heavy, Engineer and Soldier all piled up into Sniper’s van, Olivia headed back down the stairs.

“Where are they going?” she wanted to know as she walked up to Demo.

“They gotta get some work done,” Demoman explained. “But they’ll be back soon, all right?”

Olivia watched through the window as the van pulled out of the driveway and headed back down the road, driving away. “All right…”

Scout cleared his throat, wanting to ease the tension. “Hey, how about we get some lunch?”

Before anyone could agree to anything, Miss Pauling called from the other room, “Olivia, can we see you for a second?”

“Oh…okay,” Olivia smoothed her skirt out, heading on into the library, where Miss Pauling and the Administrator were waiting.

“Olivia, please sit down,” Helen pulled up a chair, motioning for the girl to sit. When she did, Helen began, “Saxton Hale will arrive tonight once everything has been taken care of. When he does, the signing will take place, and you will sign over the rights of Mann Co. to him for good. Do you understand?”

Olivia looked down at her hands, not answering for a moment. Helen asked again, “Do you understand, Olivia?”

“I don’t wanna do it,” Olivia murmured, hugging her arms, closing in on herself. It would all be over then—the life she had wanted and had been promised would be gone, along with her father.

Miss Pauling sighed, though Helen remained firm. “I know you don’t, but you must. I’m afraid you don’t have a choice,”

When Olivia still didn’t look up, Helen stepped forward, brushing the girl’s hair out of her face like she had done on the first day. As Olivia tilted her head up to look at Helen, the woman paused her actions, pulling her hand back. “All you have to do is sign, little one,”

Miss Pauling watched the interaction from where she stood, feeling her heart ache. It had to be done, Olivia couldn’t have this company in her hands, not with the direction her father had given her. Except now, with company ownership out of the way, Olivia would be placed in new hands: Helen’s hands.

House of Light Finale: Ecliptic Darkness

Summary:

Fireteam Paralight and the House of Light have infiltrated Firebase Hades. But when Marcia's Taken power activates on its own, she decides to open up to Rae and friends about how she became part-Taken.

Previous Part: Here

“Stay…A͓͓̰̞͈̎̐ͪͭ̐̏͑̕ ͈͐͠W͑͊͊̓͛ ͇̲̰̤̲̝ͭ͆̈ͤ̀͟A̫͝ ̨̺̫ͯͫ͗̚Y̧̤̦̰̘̮͓̙͌̑ͫ !͚ͭͭ̄̕ ̔̍͊̈́͒̋̈́!̡̯͇͈̩̌̎̎̈ͮ ͬͣ͒̈!̙͉̖̳̮”

As Marcia’s distorted voice rang out, a large orb of Taken Blight appeared as a Taken Ogre emerged and began viciously attacking the Centurion and the remaining Red Legion. “What is that thing?!” Tif exclaimed as Mithrax got into a defensive position. “Since when could Marcia summon Primevals?!” Blaze yelled out. The Taken Ogre wiped out the rest of the Red Legion before slowly turning its attention to the Guardians and Fallen nearby.

“L̤͈̤̬ͧ͝E̺͚̳̦͗̑́ͩ̈́̐ͤḀ͎̼̦̟V̟̳͓̠̚E̙͑̊ͨ̎ͤ̚̕!̹̰̜̓̎̓ ͮ̅̍͋N̵̲̱͇͆͊̽ͩ͌ͪ͋ ̗͔̣ͨ͆̾̃ͥO̅͆̒̃̋͆̆ ̸͍͆ͪW̛̟̹̪͓͇̜̟ ͓̯̃͑!̬ͫͥ͐ͯͧ ̘̪̎ͮ́̀͊ͮ!̸̘̮̮͈͕̣̔̏̓ͭ̎ ̠̪̰̹̘̫̬̈ͣ̔ͭ̓!̶̯̂̿ͥ͒̈̀͛”

As Marcia roared at the Taken Ogre, it disappeared in a flash of light. Rae rushed over to Marcia and helped the rogue Lightbearer to her feet, “Are you ok? What happened?” “I…I dunno. That’s never happened before.” Marcia muttered, “It’s usually kept at bay by the amplifier crystal. And even then, it only summons a Taken if I tell it to. My power’s never summoned one by itself, let alone a Primeval.” “Wait. You can summon Taken?!” Blaze’s jaw nearly hit the floor. “What is a…’Taken’?” Tif asked, “You mean the Kle?” “Kle?” “It means ‘Steal’. Some Eliksni would be consumed by this weird goo and return as weird monsters like that thing.” “Many Eliksni stolen. Few from House Light.” Mithrax added, “None return. Dar den.” “Dar den means ’gone forever’.” Tif explained. “Look.” Marcia began, “It’s a long story. I’ll explain it all when we get back to the Tower. For now let’s get that reactor and get out of here.” ——————————————————————— Rae watched on as Blaze and Adam helped Mithrax and Tif install the reactor on Mithrax’s Ketch and began to start setting it up so it would produce Ether. She glanced over to Marcia, who was sitting in the corner of the room, staring at her left arm with an uncomfortable expression on her face. Rae walked over to Marcia and sat next to her, “You alright?” “Not really.” Marcia sighed, still staring at her arm, “I’ve been getting these weird surges in my arm for the past few days now…but it’s never done that before. My powers haven’t done anything like that since…” Marcia cut herself off as she subconsciously rubbed her forehead. She sighed in defeat as she looked up at Rae, “I promised you I’d explain why I can summon Taken, didn’t I?” “We’d like an explanation too.” Blaze spoke up as she and Adam made their way over to the two Paragonialans. “If it’s not too much trouble.” Adam added. “Nah, it ain’t.” Marcia replied, motioning for them to sit down with her and Rae, “You guys deserve answers too.” Blaze and Adam sat down opposite to Marcia and Rae. Marcia took a deep breath before speaking, “Ok, first thing’s first. You can’t tell a soul about what I’m about to tell you, yeah? The only other people who know the full story are Eris and Drifter.” The trio nodded in understanding as Marcia continued, “Before I was revived, I was a respected member of Tribe Claw on Mars…well, respected to an extent. I was part of a group called Seekers. Our job were to scout around Mars to keep tabs on enemy forces and report back to the tribe leader, Chieftess Tsume, if anything was off. We wanted to prevent any tragedies before they happened.” “So…you were kinda like a spy?” Blaze asked. “You could say that.” Marcia replied, “One day, I was scouting on Phobos when I saw these creatures. I didn’t know what they were at the time. They looked like Cabal, but all shadowy and monstrous.” “Taken.” Rae muttered. “Yup. I went back to the tribe to alert Tsume, but she wouldn’t listen. She brushed off my claims as I just saw ‘some Cabal covered in tar’ or something. She said that unless I got her proof of otherwise, she wouldn’t send out a team to investigate these things.” Marcia’s expression became somewhat agitated as she continued, “Remember that part. SHE wanted proof. So I went to get it for her. But things went wrong…very wrong. I got too close and the Taken began attacking me. One of them, a Vex I think, got a strike at my face which gave me this scar on my chin. I couldn’t take them all at once and the next thing I knew there was a flash of light and everything went dark. I was in some sort of pitch-black void with tiny dots of light all around. I had been Taken. I thought that was the end of me, but something odd happened. I felt both my Paragonialan Light beginning to stir along with the Darkness trying to corrupt me. It was like the two were trying to cancel each other out and the pain was unbearable. I don’t know how long I was stuck like that. After that, everything was a blur. I remember barely having any control over my body and having to practically drag myself back to my ship. I managed to somehow safely land my ship back at the tribe, hoping my fellow tribe members would help me. Instead I was met with Tsume aiming a gun at me. I remembered feeling seething rage run through me and then Taken Thralls appeared everywhere, killing everyone in sight. Next thing I knew, I was waking up on the ground looking up at the night sky…and there was Nox. I still had my memories for some reason, however. I just assumed that it had something to do with the Darkness. I was able to get a light amplifier crystal to make both my new Light and Paragonialan Light strong enough to fully cancel out the Darkness. But my arm now looked like this.” Marcia rolled up her sleeve to reveal her Paragonialan markings.

“I was now able to summon Taken when I removed the crystal.” Marcia explained, pointing at the crystal earring, “I spent most of my Guardian life in the wilds after I took my ship to Earth, occasionally running into a certain rogue Lightbearer and getting pulled into whatever shenanigan he was stuck in. Not that I’m complaining.” Marcia smiled slightly, a small blush dusting her face as she fixed her sleeve, “But when I eventually arrived at the Tower, everyone kept a distance…everyone except Eris, who was able to tell me about the Taken. She was my only ally at the Tower. Well Cayde was cool with me but was still kinda freaked out by me. I didn’t feel welcomed there. So I left. It was then I met other Lightbearers who didn’t trust the Traveller or didn’t feel welcome at the Tower. So I formed a group of rogues, making a place where we all belonged. The Umbrialyx – Paragonialan Latin for Dark Light – and they made me their leader. Or as they liked to put it, their queen. But the Umbrialyx fell when we all lost our Light, thanks to Ghaul. They were either killed by the Red Legion or scattered across the globe trying to escape. I was one of the lucky few, defending myself with guns and a lot of Taken. Eventually I heard Drifter had shown up at the Tower, so I thought ‘Screw it. Staying at the Tower is better than living in the Wilds alone.’. And you know the rest.” “That’s…a really sad story.” Marcia looked to her side to see Tif and Mithrax sitting and listening intently to her story. Even though he was sitting, Mithrax still towered over everyone else. “It-it’s nothing!” Marcia cleared her throat, trying to hide her embarrassment, “It was centuries ago, so I’m long over it. So does anyone have any questions?” “How old are you anyway?” Blaze asked, “Rae was around 800 when she died, so how old were you?” “Eh. Lost count after my first millennium. Counting my Guardian life, I’m well over 1,000, which is the Paragonialan equivalent of a middle-aged woman. 800 is a young adult.” “1,000 is middle-age?! How what age equals old to you guys?!” “We’re immortal, so we don’t really have a ‘near-the-end-of-your-life’. But I guess you start to look elderly around 5,000. Never met anyone that old though.” “That’s cool!!” Tif exclaimed, “I wish I could live that long!” “Tif, you’re a Guardian. As long as you keep your Ghost safe, you will live that long.” Marcia explained. “Really!? That’s awesome!!” Mithrax looked at Tif with a confused look. “Ne frer go di.” She explained in Eliksni, which Mithrax nodded in understanding. “Ok, she either said she’s free from death…” Marcia explained, “Or she’s freely a Kell that’s dying.” “Pretty sure it’s the first one.” Rae chuckled before turning to Tif and Mithrax, “How’s the reactor working out?” “Great!” Tif grinned, “We’ll be getting Ether in no time!” “House Light give many thanks.” Mithrax added, “We forever allies of Paralight.” “And we’re forever allies of the House of Light.” Rae smiled. “Welp!” Marcia stood up and stretched, “Imma head over to the farm to see Zakris and head back to the Tower. See ya next Gambit, punks!” As Marcia transmatted off the Ketch, she glanced down at her arm, feeling the Darkness stir up again, but not as strong as last time fortunately. “Hmm…I think it’s time I pay an old friend a visit.”

To Be Continued in Shadowkeep.

Dangerous Mission

My Blind Date’s Valentine’s Day fic for @1schadenfreude Happy Valentine’s Day!

-

Every breath sent a wave of agony lancing through Spy’s side. He clutched at it, trying not to think about how much blood was welling up against his hand or the darkness threatening to creep in on his vision.

He couldn’t believe it, he’d been jumped by a damn Spy-Bot, he of all people should’ve seen that coming. He’d got what he’d come for though, the location the bot army was being built at. Now he just needed to get it back to his team, easier said than done when a) he could barely stand and b) the Spy-Bot had undoubtedly signaled an intruder alert before Spy managed to take it down. It was only a matter of time before he was flooded with a bunch more.

Unfortunately, invisibility wasn’t an option when he was losing so much blood it’d take a blind person to not see it; the robots were dumb but they weren’t that dumb. He’d radioed in that he’d been hit, not giving details on the damage done, but his only immediate back up was Sniper who’d been watching from a high vantage point outside, everyone else was miles away. Meaning he was as good as dead already.

Loud clanking came from down the hall, coming closer, the familiar sound of the robot’s marching. Spy pulled out his revolver as they entered the room, he’d go down fighting at least. There were four of them, normally he’d have no problem taking them down but he was injured, he’d take down as many as he could though.

Before he could get off a single shot though, a gun fired behind them in the hallway and one of them dropped as its head exploded. Three more quick gunshots and it was over.

Given the speed and accuracy of the shots, Spy wasn’t surprised when Sniper stepped in next. He’d never been happier to see someone before. He’d fully believed he’d been going to die. The wave of relief that washed through him almost made him dizzy.

“Hey mate,” Sniper said as he approached. “You don’t look so good, can you walk?”

“Help me stand.” Spy reached one hand up towards him. They weren’t out of the woods yet, they were still in the depths of robot’s base, more would no doubt be coming soon.

Sniper took his hand and pulled him to his feet. A wave of dizziness washed though him, the only thing keeping him from blacking out entirely was the pain in his side as he clutched onto Sniper.

“… get you out of here and take you to Medic.” Sniper’s voice came through as the ringing in Spy’s head faded. He sounded worried, Spy wanted to assure him that it was fine but lacked the breath for it.

“Why’d you come?” he said instead as they started walking, Sniper supporting him more than a little.

“To save you.” Yeah, but going deep into the bowels of the enemy’s facility was not something he normally did or was particularly good for. He could very well get them both killed. Spy didn’t have the energy to argue though.

It wasn’t even five minutes before they were attacked again. Sniper had to abandon Spy to lean against the wall for support instead as he pulled out his SMG, this being too close of quarters for a sniper rifle to be fully effective. Spy did what he could to help with his revolver but his aim was shaky and he had next to no mobility. He did manage to take out a couple despite that though, a testament to how long he’d survived doing this job. It was a small group though, if a large group attacked them next, they’d be in big trouble.

“You can take my invis-watch and get out,” Spy said when Sniper returned to him. “Tell Scout I’m sorry for everything and…”

“No,” Sniper cut him off, taking his arm and pulling it around his shoulders again to help him start walking again.

“But…”

“Shut up,” Sniper interrupted again. “I ain’t leaving you to die mate.”

Spy groaned but dropped it. He lacked the strength to argue and didn’t want to die anyway. All they could do was hope for the best.

They went as fast as Spy physically was capable. Even that pace was torture, blood soaked his side from his wound, hopefully it wasn’t as bad as it seemed right, he could not die like this. Only adrenaline and years of being in this line of work kept him going.

The unmistakable sound of robots marchin soon found them again. Spy didn’t need to see them to know there were more than last time, a lot more.

“Too many to fight, run,” he said, giving Sniper a small push in the opposite direction. With his injuries Spy would only slow him down and get him killed. “I’ll hold them off as long as I can.”

“Mate, I thought I already fucking told you…” Sniper bent down put his arm under Spy’s legs, sweeping him up off his feet and into his arms, “I ain’t leaving you to die.” He started running, it wasn’t fast but it was faster now that Spy’s injury wasn’t slowing him down.

The sounds of pursuit were uncomfortably close behind them. Spy didn’t dare check to see how close, clinging onto Sniper instead, hating every second of this. As humiliating as it was to be carried, he had no proper grounds to complain right now and the pain flaring in his side took his breath away anyway. Hopefully no one else on the team would ever know about this, he’d never live it down. … Assuming they even made it out of this mess alive.

Thankfully the robots weren’t good at running either else they would’ve quickly caught up. And doubly thankfully Sniper seemed to have memorized the way out as it was only minutes before they were busting out a side door into fresh air.

They weren’t in the clear yet though. In fact, they were in even more danger out here. They were out in the open, they could be sniped or shot at freely. It was dark though, only the stars and a tiny sliver of moon up in the sky provided light. It wasn’t enough to properly see by and thus hopefully wouldn’t be enough for even a robot to be able to see them well enough to shoot them or even follow them.

Sniper seemed to have been running for ages before his pace started to flag. He was eventually forced to come to a panting halt. “I think… we lost them,” he said. “You doing… okay?”

“Yes.” No, he was still losing blood, though seemingly not quite as much as before and his side still hurt like hell. But he was alive and judging by the lack of heavy robot steps they did indeed seem to have lost their pursuers. “Put me down.”

Sniper grunted as he placed him back on his feet. Even weaker than before, Spy was still forced to cling to him for support or risk falling over. He hardly cared though. Grabbing onto Sniper’s shirtfront he kissed him, full on the mouth. Sniper’s body jerked and froze for a moment before sinking into it.

It didn’t last long, Sniper was still out of breath. But they only parted for a short time before leaning in for another one. It was passionate and deep, a release of the all the tension that had built within them from having come so close to getting killed. Coupled with the blood loss, it made Spy feel as if he might faint. Which was ultimately the sole reason he eventually had to pull away.

“What was that about?” Sniper asked, now out of breath in a different way.

Honestly Spy didn’t know, it had been a spur of the moment thing born of the tension caused by everything that had just happened. If he’d considered the move before doing it he probably wouldn’t have done it but he was glad he had and didn’t regret it in the slightest. “Had to show my appreciation for you saving my life,” he said. “I wouldn’t mind doing so again in the future.”

“Oh uh… yeah, sure.” The darkness made it nigh on impossible to read his facial expression but he sounded pleased by that idea. “Anyway uh… I need to patch up your side as best I can and then radio Medic and the rest of the team out here to come get us.”

Spy grunted his assent as he let Sniper help lower him to the ground. Lying in the grass was not ideal but it’s not like they had any other options. His suit was already ruined with blood, a few grass stains wouldn’t matter at this point.

Sniper pulled out a flashlight to examine Spy’s side. It was small but Engie had made it and thus it was bright enough to see by.

“How bad is it?” Spy asked, dreading the answer. Now the only thing that kept him from passing out was sheer willpower and pain.

“Not good, what happened?”

Spy groaned, he lacked the mental capacity to come up with a good lie. “A Spy-Bot surprised me, almost killed me.”

Thankfully Sniper’s only reply was a grunt as he placed the flashlight sideways on the ground pointed towards Spy side. He pulled out a roll of bandages from his pocket – Medic insisted that they all carry basic first aid supplies and know the basics of how to use it just in case – and started bandaging Spy up.

He needed a lot more than bandages but it would slow his blood loss until Medic could get to him. And thus it was a temporary job, Sniper didn’t do anything about his clothes, putting the bandages over them in places. It was a huge relief, just him bandaging the wound sent waves of pain through it, anything more might’ve broken Spy’s resolve to remain silent about his pain.

“I’m going to radio the team our position now, Medic will be here soon, so just hang in there, ‘kay?” Sniper patted Spy’s hand as if comforting him. … It was nice.

“Okay,” he said, giving a small thumbs up. He could hold on for a little bit longer until Medic came, he’d be fine.

While Sniper turned away to take out the radio and talk into it, Spy pulled out his pocket watch. It was a habitual thing born of liking to know what time it was.

“It’s past midnight,” he said when Sniper returned his full attention to him after relaying their approximate location to Miss Pauling. Their team was on the way to pick them up and bring them back to base, all they could do was hope they found them before the robots did. “That means it’s officially Valentine’s Day. So you want to be my Valentine?”

“Uh… is now really the time for this?”

“Don’t see why not? We got nothing better to do expect wait.” Chances of him bleeding to death were diminished significantly by the bandages so why not? And Spy was borderline delirious from blood loss and exhaustion, he didn’t care though. “So, your answer?”

“Uh… yeah, sure, I’ll be your Valentine.”

“Merci.” Spy’s willpower was starting to fade, he’d either fall asleep soon or pass out whether he liked it or not.

As his eyes started to droop closed gentle hands suddenly moved him, placing his head on Sniper’s lap. It was certainly more comfortable than the ground. “Merci,” he said again.

Sniper didn’t reply. Instead he took one of Spy’s hands in his own, giving it a gentle squeeze. Now there was nothing better to do but nap until the rest of the team got here.