#so I based it off of that thumbnail art of him hugging his parents | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nitewrighter · 4 years

Text

High Elf Cleric

A Fic for @the-legion in exchange for some AMAZING art of Aedan.

This fic is taking place after the events of Breach but before Dragonback.

----

The Lindholm’s workshop on the watchpoint was always a little stuffy. The cold fluorescent lights battling it out against the warm glow of the boilers and the smelter. Brigitte chewed on her thumbnail as she studied the schematics before her eyes flicked back up to Aedan, Rei, and Rajeev sitting across the desk from her.

“Did any of you guys clear this with Winston or Jack?” she said, tucking one of the locks at her temple back.

“Well--” Aedan glanced off awkwardly.

“We cleared it with Marti. We figured Jack would be more open to the idea if we came prepared,” said Rei, “Plus, now that Marti’s strike team is down a medic...” Rei trailed off.

“Down a--?” Brigitte glanced up at Rei, “..you’re taking Hana’s offer?”

“Just until I can get the dragon back,” said Rei, “It’s what’s best for the strike team.” Rei’s gut still stung with the words, but she knew the whole watchpoint knew by now.

Brigitte raised her eyebrows and brought her hand up in a ‘No judgment’ gesture before she looked over at Aedan. “You’ll be taking her place?”

“Not replacing her,” said Aedan, “Just...making sure we’re not short-handed in the meantime.”

“He’s been training with us, he’s got inside knowledge on Talon, and he’s well past the vetting process,” Rajeev added.

“And I know he can handle the pressures of the field,” said Rei.

“And you made Rei’s and my armor!” said Rajeev.

“I only made 40% of your armor, Rajeev,” said Brigitte with a slightly wry grin, “The rest is hard-light.”

“Still...” Rajeev trailed off.

Aedan nervously ran a hand through his hair. “What are your thoughts on it?”

“Well, speaking as a medic, one of the most important aspects of your job is having your team’s trust, so if Marti’s cleared you, that’s all the reassurance I need.”

“And... speaking as an engineer?” said Rei, pointing at the schematics.

“Oh!” Brigitte glanced down, “It’s pretty solid. The uh... color scheme’s interesting.”

“I just figured it was easier than spray painting, ‘Not with Talon’ on my chest,” said Aedan, “And well.. I’ve thought a lot about Samir saying we should treat our mission fatigues more like a uniform, and we can’t exactly wear the blue of the old Overwatch... so...”

“If I could make a suggestion?” said Brigitte leaning forward.

“Please,” said Aedan.

Brigitte set the holo-tablet down in front of her and pressed a button on it, turning the image on the screen into a 3-dimensional hologram. “Your... rig, you called it?”

“Biotic rig,” said Aedan.

“Well you’ve obviously been able to scale it down from your Mother’s model,” said Brigitte, “Less bulk, that’s good, but it’s more delicate. The thing about the Valkyrie armor is that it’s designed more around speed than protection. With your fade, you don’t need to worry about that as much. You’re modeling your armor after Doctor Ziegler when you might be better off modeling it after...um...”

“...Reaper,” said Aedan, glancing off.

“Marti based a lot of her uniform on old Blackwatch armor,” said Brigitte with a shrug, “You go with what works.”

Aedan still looked troubled.

“Well, we don’t need to give you a big edgy cloak,” said Brigitte, “But..” she picked up a tablet pen and traced out some pauldrons in three dimensions in the hologram. “A bit more protection here on the shoulders and back. Protect the main node of the rig. And the boots--we could change those. You’re not going to be prancing on valkyrie shock-absorbing boots. We could get you some armor there, too.” Brigitte traced out some greaves on the model’s shins as she spoke.

“...That doesn’t look much like Reaper,” said Aedan, leaning forward.

“Different looks, similar functionality,” said Brigitte.

“I like the shin guards,” said Rajeev, “Null Sector slicers can be hell on the shins.”

“I like the pauldrons,” said Rei, “They make you look... heroic.”

“Heroic?” Aedan repeated. He never really imagined himself being remotely associated with the word.

“Yeah! You’re a High Elf Cleric!” said Rajeev.

Both Aedan and Rei gave him an odd look.

“What?” said Rajeev, “I mean--I’m not the only one who sees it, right?”

“Well ‘cleric’s’ a lot less pressure than ‘Angel,’” said Brigitte, a slight chuckle shaking her voice.

“So you’ll help us make it?” said Rei.

“Been a while since I’ve been able to work on something more than just repairs,” said Brigitte, “Yeah, I could do with the challenge.”

“Thank you,” said Aedan.

“You’re a lifesaver, Brig,” said Rajeev.

“Oh I know,” said Brigitte with a smug wave, “I’ll make it so long as Rei here promises not to forget about us when she’s a big-time movie star.”

“I’m just going to be an intern,” said Rei, folding her arms, “And even then it’s just until I get the dragon back.”

“Right,” said Brigitte, making eye contact with Rei, “Right...”

----

“...so you’re really going through with the Glitchbot thing,” said Rajeev. He was sitting on her bed, leafing through one of her manga volumes as late afternoon light streamed through the window, watching as Rei cleaned out her closet. It had been a few days since the workshop.

“You were there when I told the whole strike team,” said Rei.

“I know it’s just... the fact that Brig knows... that makes it feel more real,” said Rajeev, setting the book down at his side. He pushed some of his own long hair back from his face. “Is it because you don’t think you can fight without it? Because y’know, even without it, wings and a sword... still pretty good combo.”

“Like I told the strike team, if there’s an emergency, you can call me back,” said Rei, “But fighting without the dragon it--it--” she huffed, “I don’t know how to explain how... hollow it feels. It would be like you fighting without knowing Samir’s watching your back.”

Rajeev’s face dropped. “Does it feel like that... all the time?”

“No, sometimes it doesn’t hurt as much but... Dad and Uncle always acted like... because the dragon healed, it meant I was making a new future for the Shimada clan,” she pulled an armored headband out of the closet, one of her Father’s old ones, and lightly ran her fingers over the contours of the battle-scuffed steel, “One where we’re good. Without it--I feel wrong. I feel like I don’t have a right to lift a sword. And I can’t just make Mom’s wings a vehicle for a sword. That’s not what the Valkyrie wings are for. Getting the dragon back is the only way any of this will feel right again.”

“...you think you’ll get it back in Hollywood?” said Rajeev, standing up from the bed.

“No--I mean--I can’t stay here. I can’t stay here and watch everyone else fighting when I’ve had this--this chunk taken out of me,” Rei pressed a hand to her forehead, “I can’t give up on it, but I can’t stay here. Does that make sense?”

“Hey--hey--it’s okay,” Rajeev touched her arm, “Yeah. It makes sense. And Jack’s always saying this fight was never meant to be ours.”

“But it is our fight, and it is our home---” said Rei, “But--” her voice dropped a little, “If... if it never comes back... maybe it’s a sign. Maybe staying in this, we’ll just end up repeating our parents’ history...”

Rajeev’s fingers mindlessly went over his prosthetic eye, just barely brushing against his wadjet tattoo.

“And I know it’s this... big awesome legacy for you,” Rei went on, “But for me, it’s all assassinations and vengeance on my dad’s side, and death and grief on my mom’s. We should have a chance to be our own people.”

“I get it,” said Rajeev, his fingers lowering from his tattoo.

“And that’s why it’s important that Aedan should be the medic while I’m gone. He’ll do great things with you guys. I just know it. He shouldn’t have to live in his mother’s shadow,” said Rei.

Rajeev gave a huffing chuckle, “You know you’re going to break his heart when you go, right?”

Rei reddened and then huffed, “Oh come on, he’s all... science-y. He understands. I’ve already talked to him about it.” She thumped her knuckles against his chest, “Plus keeping you alive is going to be a full time job for him.”

“Hey, I’ve gotten better!” said Rajeev.

Rei put her hands on her hips skeptically.

“A little better,” Rajeev conceded, “And... I’m going to miss you, too, but I support you. I’ll keep them safe while you’re... doing your thing.”

Rei smiled. “Thank you, Rajeev.”

Rajeev spread his arms and Rei snickered and fell in to the hug. His hugs were second only to Reinhardt’s--big, tight, and all-consuming. Rajeev held up a fist as they broke away.

“‘Got-Our-Ass-Handed-To-Us-By-Talon’ Club?” he said.

Rei bumped his fist with her own. “ ‘Got-Our-Ass-Handed-To-Us-By-Talon’ Club,” she said with a smile.

----

About a week and a half after that first workshop visit, the four of them were back in the workshop, Aedan standing with his arms spread out awkwardly as Brigitte made sure the plates of his armor moved as intended.

“It’s not too heavy on the chest?” said Brigitte.

Nothing a bit of strength training won’t fix, Aedan remembered his own mother’s voice as he looked down at the armor, but it wasn’t as heavy as the Talon armor. He gave a glance to Rei--right... that morning he was trying on his armor was that same morning when she had come crashing into his life with all the beauty and catastrophe of a comet. Try fading, Moira’s voice still sounded in his mind in the memory.

Aedan thoughtlessly turned to smoke and Brigitte winced back from him, hard, the word “Fan!” escaping her.

“Sorry!” Aedan said as he reformed, “Sorry, just... wanted to make sure it, uh... fades.”

“A little warning next time?” said Brigitte.

“Right,” said Aedan, rubbing at the back of his neck.

“Try out the rig!” said Rajeev.

Aedan flicked his wrist and sent out a plume of biotics with one hand, then reabsorbed them in a vortex of nanites with the other. “Seems to be in working order,” he said, alighting biotic orbs on both hands, “I don’t suppose anyone has a mirror?”

“Athena?” said Rei, “Can we get selfie mode on the big monitor?” Athena extended her biggest monitor in the Workshop. The screen blipped and Aedan saw himself projected, caught in the glow of the white of his own outfit.

“...High Elf Cleric,” Aedan said a little dumbly, looking at his projection.

“See?! That’s what I said!” said Rajeev, moving into the frame of the monitor to swing an arm around Aedan’s shoulders.

“I like it,” said Rei, stepping into frame on Aedan’s other side, “It suits you.”

“Let’s just hope your mum doesn’t kill me for cribbing the Valkyrie color scheme,” said Aedan with a nervous chuckle.

“Eh, she’s had her own suit upgraded for a while, and we did say we wanted to give our strike team more of a uniform look,” said Rei with a shrug. She smiled. “Besides,” she added and ruffled his hair, “This one matches your hair.”

#Moiraspawn #follow for more Gency kid facts #Symmarah kids #reidan #mild reijeedan

11 notes · View notes